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plot
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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English
Etymology
From Middle English plot, plotte, from Old English plot (“a plot of ground”), from Proto-Germanic *plataz, *platjaz (“a patch”), of uncertain origin. Cognate with Middle Low German plet (“patch, strip of cloth, rags”), German Bletz (“rags, bits, strip of land”), and possibly Gothic 𐍀𐌻𐌰𐍄 (plat, “a patch, rags”). See also plat. See also complot for an influence on or source of sense 5.
Sense 9 is a back-formation from for the plot.
Pronunciation
Noun
plot (plural plots)
- (narratology) The course of a story, comprising a series of incidents which are gradually unfolded, sometimes by unexpected means. [from 1640s]
- Synonym: storyline
- c. 1725, Alexander Pope, View of the Epic Poem:
- If the plot or intrigue must be natural, and such as springs from the subject, then the winding up of the plot must be a probable consequence of all that went before.
- An area or land used for building on or planting on. [from 1550s]
- Synonym: parcel
- A grave.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:grave
- He's buried in the family plot.
- A graph or diagram drawn by hand or produced by a mechanical or electronic device.
- Synonyms: scheme; see also Thesaurus:diagram
- 2017, Mark Chambers, Tony Holmes, Nakajima B5N ‘Kate’ and B6N ‘Jill’ Units, page 32:
- I was told to fly out on a vector of 100 degrees to meet a strong plot of aircraft 30 miles from the coast.
- A secret plan to achieve an end, the end or means usually being illegal or otherwise questionable. [from 1580s]
- Synonyms: conspiracy, intrigue, machination, scheme
- The plot would have enabled them to get a majority on the board.
- The assassination of Lincoln was part of a larger plot.
- c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene vi]:
- I have o'erheard a plot of death.
- 1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC, Act I, scene i, page 1:
- O, think what anxious moments pass between / The birth of plots and their last fatal periods!
- Contrivance; deep reach thought; ability to plot or intrigue.
- a. 1669, John Denham, On Mr Thomas Killigrew's Return from Venice, and Mr William Murrey's from Scotland:
- a man of much plot
- Participation in any stratagem or conspiracy.
- 1643, J[ohn] M[ilton], The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce: […], London: […] T[homas] P[aine] and M[atthew] S[immons] […], →OCLC:
- And when Christ saith, Who marries the divorced commits adultery, it is to be understood, if he had any plot in the divorce.
- A plan; a purpose.
- Synonyms: design; see also Thesaurus:design
- 1651, Jer[emy] Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Francis Ashe […], →OCLC:
- no other plot in their religion but serve God and save their souls
- (fandom slang, euphemistic) Attractive physical attributes of a fictional character; assets.
- Actor X has some great plot near the end of E07.
Derived terms
- A plot
- applot
- Ashby plot
- bagplot
- barplot
- beach ball plot
- beanplot
- bioplot
- biplot
- blobplot
- box and whisker plot
- box and whiskers plot
- box plot
- B plot
- by-plot
- counterplot
- doghouse plot
- dotplot
- emplot
- Fermi-Kurie plot
- forest plot
- funnel plot
- grass plot
- green plot
- Gunpowder Plot
- heat plot
- jitterplot
- Joy plot
- karyoplot
- Kurie plot
- line plot
- lose the plot
- macroplot
- marplot
- metaplot
- microplot
- misplot
- mosaic plot
- multiplot
- plot armor
- plot armour
- plot bunny
- plot coupon
- plot device
- plotful
- plotholder
- plotholding
- plot hole
- plotland
- plotless
- plotlet
- plot line
- plotline
- plot point
- plotproof
- plottage
- plot twist
- plot-twisty
- plotty
- plotwise
- plotwork
- Q-Q plot
- Ramachandran plot
- raster plot
- ridgeline plot
- scatterplot
- scatter plot
- scree plot
- seedplot
- souvenir plot
- spine plot
- star plot
- stemplot
- subplot
- swarm plot
- the plot thickens, plot thickens
- triplot
- underplot
- unplot
- violin plo
- volcano plot
- waterfall plot
Translations
course of a story
|
area of land used for building on or planting on
|
grave — see grave
graph or diagram
|
secret plan to achieve an end
|
ability to plot or intrigue
|
participation in any stratagem or conspiracy
|
Verb
plot (third-person singular simple present plots, present participle plotting, simple past and past participle plotted)
- (transitive, intransitive) To conceive (a crime, misdeed etc).
- They had plotted a robbery.
- They were plotting against the king.
- (transitive) To trace out (a graph or diagram).
- They plotted the number of edits per day.
- (transitive) To mark (a point on a graph, chart, etc).
- Every five minutes they plotted their position.
- 1602, Richard Carew, Survey on Cornwall:
- This treatise plotteth down Cornwall as it now standeth.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Translations
transitive: to conceive
|
intransitive: to conceive a crime or misdeed
|
to trace out a graph or diagram
|
to mark a point on a graph
|
Anagrams
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