plain

1 of 5

adjective

1
: lacking ornament : undecorated
2
: free of extraneous matter : pure
3
: free of impediments to view : unobstructed
4
a(1)
: evident to the mind or senses : obvious
it's perfectly plain that they will resist
(2)
: clear
let me make my meaning plain
b
: marked by outspoken candor : free from duplicity or subtlety : blunt
plain talk
5
a
: belonging to the masses : common
b
: lacking special distinction or affectation : ordinary
6
: characterized by simplicity : not complicated
plain home-cooked meals
7
: lacking beauty or ugliness
8
archaic : even, level
plainly adverb
plainness noun

plain

2 of 5

noun

1
a
: an extensive area of level or rolling treeless country
b
: a broad unbroken expanse
2
: something free from artifice, ornament, or extraneous matter

plain

3 of 5

adverb (1)

: in a plain manner : without obscurity or ambiguity
saw them clearly and told you plainAmer. Documentation

plain

4 of 5

adverb (2)

: absolutely sense 1a
plain wrong

plain

5 of 5

verb

plained; plaining; plains
Choose the Right Synonym for plain

common, ordinary, plain, familiar, popular, vulgar mean generally met with and not in any way special, strange, or unusual.

common implies usual everyday quality or frequency of occurrence

a common error
lacked common honesty

and may additionally suggest inferiority or coarseness.

common manners

ordinary stresses conformance in quality or kind with the regular order of things.

an ordinary pleasant summer day
a very ordinary sort of man

plain is likely to suggest homely simplicity.

plain hard-working people

familiar stresses the fact of being generally known and easily recognized.

a familiar melody

popular applies to what is accepted by or prevalent among people in general sometimes in contrast to upper classes or special groups.

a writer of popular romances

vulgar, otherwise similar to popular, is likely to carry derogatory connotations (as of inferiority or coarseness).

souvenirs designed to appeal to the vulgar taste

evident, manifest, patent, distinct, obvious, apparent, plain, clear mean readily perceived or apprehended.

evident implies presence of visible signs that lead one to a definite conclusion.

an evident fondness for sweets

manifest implies an external display so evident that little or no inference is required.

manifest hostility

patent applies to a cause, effect, or significant feature that is clear and unmistakable once attention has been directed to it.

patent defects

distinct implies such sharpness of outline or definition that no unusual effort to see or hear or comprehend is required.

a distinct refusal

obvious implies such ease in discovering that it often suggests conspicuousness or little need for perspicacity in the observer.

the obvious solution

apparent is very close to evident except that it may imply more conscious exercise of inference.

for no apparent reason

plain suggests lack of intricacy, complexity, or elaboration.

her feelings about him are plain

clear implies an absence of anything that confuses the mind or obscures the pattern.

a clear explanation

frank, candid, open, plain mean showing willingness to tell what one feels or thinks.

frank stresses lack of shyness or secretiveness or of evasiveness from considerations of tact or expedience.

frank discussions

candid suggests expression marked by sincerity and honesty especially in offering unwelcome criticism or opinion.

a candid appraisal

open implies frankness but suggests more indiscretion than frank and less earnestness than candid.

open in saying what they think

plain suggests outspokenness and freedom from affectation or subtlety in expression.

plain talk

Examples of plain in a Sentence

Adjective It was a plain room with no curtains. She was wearing plain black shoes. He printed the picture on plain paper. a piece of plain chicken You don't have to call me Mr. Johnson—just plain Fred will be fine. What he said is a lie, plain and simple. Noun the Great Plains of the United States the first settlers in that area lived on the vast plains in lonely log cabins
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Additionally, a few people, like Snyder and Haass, make plain what people can and should do to defend against bad leaders, to be not just reactive but proactive. Barbara Kellerman, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2024 The plain language of what the president, vice president and administrator of USAID have said in recent days suggests that Israel is doing that. Elena Burnett, NPR, 6 Mar. 2024 Many programmers often liken coding in Python, for instance, to writing in plain English, thanks to its friendly syntax. Sheon Han, WIRED, 4 Mar. 2024 Broken tree limbs make adorable accents for plain white shelves. Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Mar. 2024 Clearly communicate from the inside out, staying future-focused and answering the most basic questions in plain English on what's happening, who is in charge and what the future looks like. Expert Panel®, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 For example, 100 grams of plain yogurt contains about 3.5 grams of protein. Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2024 Scene 9: The aftermath of the bombing Oppenheimer and his Los Alamos associates react in stunned silence at footage of the Japanese victims of the bombings, the horror of their achievement made plain. Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2024 Forbes senior contributor Tony Bradley talked to the company’s chief technology officer Elia Zaitsev about the release, which basically allows security analysts to ask complex queries in plain language and get immediate actionable insights. Cio, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024
Noun
First, the flames came storming across the vistas of the Texas Panhandle, burning through the grassy plains and scrub land of the region’s cattle ranches. Sean Murphy, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2024 Warm, dry conditions across the state prompted the weather service to issue a hazardous weather outlook for parts of the plains, warning residents of potential fire danger and issuing a red flag warning for southern Lincoln County from noon to 6 p.m. Friday. Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 1 Mar. 2024 The state is home to 10 big game species that are found anywhere from the sprawling plains filled with sagebrush to the lush cottonwood river bottoms to the majestic Rockies. Jace Bauserman, Field & Stream, 29 Feb. 2024 The broken blade was discarded, left to the dirt of the plains, according to a new study published in January in the Journal of the North Texas Archeological Society. Moira Ritter, Miami Herald, 29 Feb. 2024 Making the movie left the duo laboring for 100 days in the oppressive heat of the Oklahoma plains. Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 22 Feb. 2024 In the later image, fresh lava had spewed to form a new plain. Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2024 Tumbleweeds rolled across desert plains, as if each one had a destination and a deadline. Marlise Kast-Myers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Jan. 2024 She is lured back to the open plains by her friend, Javi (Anthony Ramos) to test a groundbreaking new tracking system. Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 12 Feb. 2024
Adverb
That streak culminated in Mr. Trump’s Super Tuesday blowout, which laid plain the near-impossibility of a path forward. Jonathan Weisman Ruth Fremson, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 Margarita’s poise, her calm demeanor in dealing with someone who clearly hurt her, and her even more apparent growth from dealing with the pain life has thrown at her, were just plain inspiring. Stephanie McNeal, Glamour, 6 Mar. 2024 Much like the classic plain white tee or the pair of incredible fitting denim jeans, bodysuits have earned their spot on the wardrobe must-have list. Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 4 Mar. 2024 Many were adamant that a concluding preposition is lazy, or just sounded plain weird. Emma Bowman, NPR, 27 Feb. 2024 At a plain white table, Carol, who has a master’s degree in public health, began her routine: checking a spreadsheet of prescriptions; printing out labels with medication information and patients’ names; printing address labels with tracking numbers and adding them to the spreadsheet. Pam Belluck, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2024 Nevertheless, the quote inevitably garnered some bad faith (or just plain dumb) backlash. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 21 Feb. 2024 The track is coming under the increasing influence of springtime low-pressure systems with their large cloud shields and just plain bad weather. Jay Anderson, Discover Magazine, 21 Feb. 2024 Indeed, with a plot swinging from mundane to terrifying, and plenty of detours into just plain stupid, Fargo still feels fresh nearly three decades later. Debby Wolfinsohn, EW.com, 4 Feb. 2024
Verb
Senior reviewer Scott Gilbertson's daughter has worn these for two years— everywhere from the icy, windy Colorado plains to the windswept Outer Banks—and she's had toasty toes throughout. Scott Gilbertson, WIRED, 27 Nov. 2023 Whereas his first billions were owed to plain, functional, durable clothing at minimal cost, today Uniqlo has moved up the value chain. Time, 13 Nov. 2023 My daughter has worn these for two years— everywhere from the icy, windy Colorado plains to the windswept Outer Banks—and she's had toasty toes throughout. WIRED, 10 Nov. 2023 Cruz spins these operations into digital content ranging from tips for aspiring investors to plain old-fashioned yacht-flaunting braggadocio. Michael Friedrich, New York Times, 18 Oct. 2023 While most places see snow at the onset, coastal areas likely mix with and changeover to plain rain overnight into Tuesday AM. Hartford Courant, 26 Feb. 2023 Flavored water generally refers to anything that adds flavoring to plain water, whether that be artificial syrups or powders, or something more natural, such as fruit. Julia Landwehr, Health, 17 Apr. 2023 But there aren’t enough wires stretching from the state’s windy eastern plains to the mesa-top community. WIRED, 27 Feb. 2023 Southern areas of the state will at least turn to a wintry mix if not over to plain rain. Hartford Courant, 26 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'plain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin planum, from neuter of planus flat, plain — more at floor

Adverb (2)

partly from Middle English plein entire, complete, from Anglo-French, full, from Latin plenus; partly from plain entry 3 — more at full

Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French pleindre, plaindre, from Latin plangere to lament — more at plaint

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 8

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adverb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Adverb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of plain was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near plain

Cite this Entry

“Plain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plain. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

plain

1 of 4 noun
: a broad area of level or rolling treeless country

plain

2 of 4 adjective
1
: having no pattern or decoration
her dress was plain
2
: free of added or extra matter : pure
a glass of plain water
3
: open and clear to the sight
in plain view
4
a
: clear to the mind
your meaning was plain
b
: frank, blunt
plain speaking
5
a
: of common or average accomplishments or position : ordinary
plain people
b
: not complicated or hard to do
plain sewing
6
: neither ugly nor beautiful
plainly adverb
plainness
ˈplān-nəs
noun

plain

3 of 4 adverb
: in a plain or simple manner

plain

4 of 4 adverb
: to a complete degree : totally
were plain overcome by all the problems
Etymology

Noun

Middle English plain "a stretch of nearly level treeless country," from early French plain (same meaning), derived from Latin planus "flat" — related to plane entry 1

Adverb

partly from Middle English plein (adjective) "entire, complete" (derived from Latin plenus "full") and partly from plain (adverb) "in a plain manner" (derived from Latin planus "flat, level")

More from Merriam-Webster on plain

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