plot
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About Our Definitions: All forms of a word (noun, verb, etc.) are now displayed on one page.1plot
noun \ˈplät\Definition of PLOT
1
2
: ground plan, plat
3
: the plan or main story (as of a movie or literary work)
4
[perhaps back-formation from complot] : a secret plan for accomplishing a usually evil or unlawful end : intrigue
5
: a graphic representation (as a chart)
— plot·less \-ləs\ adjective
— plot·less·ness noun
See Examples of PLOT
- The plots are selling for $15,000 per acre.
- They just bought a 12-acre plot of land.
- The book's plot revolves around a woman who is searching for her missing sister.
- The movie has a weak plot.
- Police uncovered a plot to assassinate the prime minister.
- The prime minister was the target of an assassination plot.
- Her books are page-turners, and yet there is more going on in them than just the mechanics of a clever plot… —Robin McKinley New York Times Book Review, 17 May 1987
- … as he stood before the great dripping department store which now occupied the big plot of ground where once had stood both the Amberson Hotel and the Amberson Opera House. —Booth Tarkington, The Magnificent Ambersons, 1918
- When I returned with the pistol the table had been cleared, and Holmes was engaged in his favourite occupation of scraping upon his violin. “The plot thickens,” he said, as I entered… —Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, 1887
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Origin of PLOT
Middle English, from Old English
First Known Use: before 12th century
Related to PLOT
- Synonyms
- conspiracy, design, intrigue, machination, scheme
Synonym Discussion of PLOT
plot, intrigue, machination, conspiracy, cabal mean a plan secretly devised to accomplish an evil or treacherous end. plot implies careful foresight in planning a complex scheme <an assassination plot>. intrigue suggests secret underhanded maneuvering in an atmosphere of duplicity <backstairs intrigue>. machination implies a contriving of annoyances, injuries, or evils by indirect means <the machinations of a party boss>. conspiracy implies a secret agreement among several people usually involving treason or great treachery <a conspiracy to fix prices>. cabal typically applies to political intrigue involving persons of some eminence <a cabal among powerful senators>.
Other Literature Terms
2plot
verb \ˈplät\plot·tedplot·ting
Definition of PLOT
transitive verb
1
a : to make a plot, map, or plan of b : to mark or note on or as if on a map or chart
3
a : to locate (a point) by means of coordinates b : to locate (a curve) by plotted points c : to represent (an equation) by means of a curve so constructed
4
: to plan or contrive especially secretly
5
: to invent or devise the plot of (as a movie or a literary work)
intransitive verb
1
: to form a plot : scheme
2
: to be located by means of coordinates <the data plot at a single point>
Examples of PLOT
- They plotted to steal the painting.
- She spent her years in prison plotting her revenge.
- We've been plotting growth strategies for the company.
- She carefully plotted her career path.
- They've plotted the locations where the trees will be planted.
- Have you plotted the route for your trip yet?
- Students plotted soil temperatures on a graph throughout the school year.
- While men plotted wars or devised philosophies, women were confined within their homes … —Barbara Ehrenreich, Ms., Winter 2007
- Would-be nation builders plotted Italy's unification from the south and the north. —David Van Biema, Time, 4 Sept. 2000
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Origin of PLOT
(see 1plot)
First Known Use: 1588
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