plant

¹plant

verb \ˈplant\

Definition of PLANT

transitive verb

1

a : to put or set in the ground for growth <plant seeds>

b : to set or sow with seeds or plants

c : implant

2

a : establish, institute

b : colonize, settle

c : to place (animals) in a new locality

d : to stock with animals

3

a : to place in or on the ground

b : to place firmly or forcibly <planted a hard blow on his chin>

4

a : conceal

b : to covertly place for discovery, publication, or dissemination

intransitive verb

: to plant something

— plant·able \ˈplan-tə-bəl\ adjective

Examples of PLANT

1. I planted corn this year.
2. I planted the border with roses.
3. a field planted with corn
4. She planted stakes in the garden to hold the vines.
5. I firmly planted my feet and refused to move.
6. He planted himself in front of the TV and stayed there.
7. Terrorists planted a bomb in the bus station.
8. She claims that the police planted the drugs in her car.
9. He was a spy planted in the office by a rival company.
10. Someone planted a rumor saying that he had died.

Origin of PLANT

Middle English, from Old English plantian, from Late Latin plantare to plant, fix in place, from Latin, to plant, from planta plant

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to PLANT

Synonyms

drill, put in, seed, sow

Antonyms

close (down), phase out, shut (up)

Related Words

bed; replant, transplant; broadcast, scatter; pot; overseed, reseed

Near Antonyms

gather, harvest, reap

Rhymes with PLANT

ant, aunt, brant, cant, chant, grant, Kant, pant, rant, scant, slant

²plant

noun

Definition of PLANT

1

a : a young tree, vine, shrub, or herb planted or suitable for planting

b : any of a kingdom (Plantae) of multicellular eukaryotic mostly photosynthetic organisms typically lacking locomotive movement or obvious nervous or sensory organs and possessing cellulose cell walls

2

a : the land, buildings, machinery, apparatus, and fixtures employed in carrying on a trade or an industrial business

b : a factory or workshop for the manufacture of a particular product; also : power plant

c : the total facilities available for production or service

d : the buildings and other physical equipment of an institution

3

: an act of planting

4

: something or someone planted

— plant·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

Examples of PLANT

1. The gangsters never suspected that he was a police plant.
2. <a furniture plant that employs hundreds of people>

Origin of PLANT

Middle English plante, from Old English, from Latin planta

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to PLANT

Synonyms

manufactory, mill, factory, shop, works, workshop

Related Words

sweatshop; atelier, studio, workplace, workroom; yard

Other Botany Terms

annual, burgeon, chloroplast, nomenclature, succulent, sylvan, xylem

plant

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Any organism in the kingdom Plantae, consisting of multicellular, eukaryotic life forms (see eukaryote) with six fundamental characteristics: photosynthesis as the almost exclusive mode of nutrition, essentially unlimited growth at meristems, cells that contain cellulose in their walls and are therefore somewhat rigid, the absence of organs of movement, the absence of sensory and nervous systems, and life histories that show alternation of generations. No definition of the kingdom completely excludes all nonplant organisms or even includes all plants. Many plants, for example, are not green and thus do not produce their own food by photosynthesis, being instead parasitic on other living plants (see parasitism). Others obtain their food from dead organic matter. Many animals possess plantlike characteristics, such as a lack of mobility (e.g., sponges) or the presence of a plantlike growth form (e.g., some corals and bryozoans), but in general such animals lack other plant characteristics. Some past classification systems (see taxonomy) placed difficult groups such as protozoans, bacteria, algae, slime molds, and fungi (see fungus) in the plant kingdom, but structural and functional differences between these organisms and plants have convinced most scientists to classify them elsewhere.