plane

A1 Topic:Aviation & Flight

US /pleɪn/ UK /pleɪn/ See IPA manual

Homophones

plain /plen/

Freq #1052

Meanings

1

noun
A vehicle with wings and engines that flies through the air.

The flight was delayed due to trouble with the plane.
2

noun
A completely flat surface that extends in all directions.

We will refer to the plane of the graph as the X-Y plane.
3

noun
A hand tool with a blade for smoothing or shaping wood.

The cabinetmaker used a plane for the finish work.
4

verb
To make wood smooth or even using a plane.

He planed the top of the door so it would close.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a vehicle with wings and... aeroplane airplane

2 noun · a completely flat surface... sheet

3 noun · a hand tool with a blade... carpenter's plane

Word family

Forms planedplanerplanesplanestplaning

Derived forms antiplaneaquaplanebackplanebattleplanebiplanecargoplanecarplanecenterplaneconvexoplanecoplanedeplaneeigenplane

Related forms plain planarplanate

Appears in

Phrases (8)

See all

paper plane
a toy aircraft folded from a sheet of paper

Adjective + noun
take a plane
to travel somewhere by aeroplane

Verb + noun
board a plane
to get on a plane in preparation for a flight

Verb + noun
catch a plane
to board a plane before it departs, often implying a rush

Verb + noun
miss a plane
to fail to board a plane before it departs

Verb + noun
private plane
an aircraft owned or chartered by an individual or organisation, not a commercial airline

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

In its geometrical and woodworking senses, plane comes from Latin planus, meaning “flat”; mathematicians adopted the spelling in the early 17th century to distinguish geometrical uses from plain. Plane meaning “aircraft” is an unrelated shortening of aeroplane. The name of the plane tree is also unrelated, coming from Greek platus, “broad.”

Etymology

From Middle English plane, borrowed from Old French plane, from Latin platanus, from Ancient Greek πλάτανος (plátanos), from πλατύς (platús, “wide, broad”).

plane Middle English platanus Latin πλάτανος Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Aviation & Flight Transportation

External links

# plane

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A1
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /pleɪn/
**IPA (UK):** /pleɪn/
**Frequency rank:** 1052

## Meanings
1. A vehicle with wings and engines that flies through the air.
2. A completely flat surface that extends in all directions.
3. A hand tool with a blade for smoothing or shaping wood.
4. To make wood smooth or even using a plane.

## Examples
- The flight was delayed due to trouble with the plane.
- We will refer to the plane of the graph as the X-Y plane.
- The cabinetmaker used a plane for the finish work.
- He planed the top of the door so it would close.

## Derived Forms
- antiplane
- aquaplane
- backplane
- battleplane
- biplane
- cargoplane
- carplane
- centerplane
- convexoplane
- coplane
- deplane
- eigenplane

## Related Forms
- plain
- planar
- planate

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: plane
- Root: platanus
- Root: πλάτανος

## Etymology
From Middle English plane, borrowed from Old French plane, from Latin platanus, from Ancient Greek πλάτανος (plátanos), from πλατύς (platús, “wide, broad”).

## AI Etymology
Plane comes from Middle English plane, borrowed from Old French plane, from Latin platanus, from Ancient Greek πλάτανος (plátanos), from πλατύς (platús, “wide, broad”). The historical chain includes plane (Middle English), plane (Old French), platanus (Latin), πλάτανος (Ancient Greek). In present-day English it covers a vehicle with wings and engines that flies through the air, a completely flat surface that extends in all directions, and a hand tool with a blade for smoothing or shaping wood. The wider family includes derived forms such as antiplane, aquaplane, backplane, battleplane, biplane and related forms such as plain, planar, planate.

## Topics
- Aviation & Flight
- Transportation

markdown