plant

verb

\ ˈplant

planted; planting; plants

Definition of plant

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to put or set in the ground for growth plant seeds

b : to set or sow with seeds or plants

c : implant

2a : establish, institute

b : colonize, settle

c : to place (animals) in a new locality

d : to stock with animals

3a : to place in or on the ground

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

4a : conceal

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

intransitive verb

: to plant something

plant

noun

Definition of plant (Entry 2 of 2)

1a : 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

2a : 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

Other Words from plant Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about plant

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Other Words from plant

Verb

plantable \ ˈplan-tə-bəl

\ adjective

Noun

plantlike \ ˈplant-ˌlīk

\ adjective

Synonyms for plant

Synonyms: Verb

drill, put in, seed, sow

Synonyms: Noun

factory, manufactory, mill, shop, works, workshop

Examples of plant in a Sentence

Verb

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

Noun

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

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

When planted in a sunny spot, an evergreen huckleberry often will top out around 2 or 3 feet in height. — Colin Mccrate, The Seattle Times, "Our native evergreen huckleberry brings dynamic color and oodles of fruit to your edible shade garden," 20 Feb. 2019 Boxwoods are a classic garden shrub, first planted in America in the mid-1600s. — Arricca Sansone, Country Living, "20 Best Boxwood Shrubs to Plant in Your Garden," 14 Feb. 2019 The duo’s clever strategies breathed fresh life into the house founder’s Space Age fashions; during their tenure, the label felt at once connected to and untethered from its past—and firmly planted in the real world. — Nicole Phelps, Vogue, "Sébastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant—Formerly of Courrèges—Are Relaunching Their First Collection, Coperni," 1 Feb. 2019 Bad-faith reviews, including some planted by beauty brands and paid influencers, can act like the obstacles that tried to thwart King Arthur and his crew. — Cheryl Wischhover, Vox, "The “best” lipstick probably won’t change your life — but the search for it can," 12 Dec. 2018 Sunshine: Mums planted in full sun bloom more profusely than those in partial shade. — The Editors, Good Housekeeping, "How to Grow the Most Gorgeous Chrysanthemums This Fall," 9 Aug. 2018 The front-drive tester (the Enclave is also available with a sophisticated all-wheel-drive system) felt poised and planted in the corners. — Al Haas, Philly.com, "Redesigned after 10 years, new Buick Enclave is worth the wait," 28 June 2018 Your left foot should remain flat and firmly planted on the floor, with the majority of your body weight in the left heel. — Jenny Mccoy, SELF, "Strengthen Your Glutes With This 5-Part Banded Circuit From Dogpound Trainer Emily Samuel," 13 Feb. 2019 The first gang planted plaintext JavaScript on the site that caused it to send payment card information to the attackers as customers were completing a sale. — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, "E-commerce site is infected not by one, but two card skimmers," 20 Nov. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The plea from Prysby, a DEQ water engineer, relates to the improper permitting of Flint’s water treatment plant during the switch. — David Eggert, The Seattle Times, "2 Michigan regulators take plea deals in Flint water case," 26 Dec. 2018 Technically speaking, hemp is a variety of the cannabis plant that contains less than 0.3 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. — Angela Chen, The Verge, "Growing hemp is about to be legal for the first time in nearly a century," 30 Nov. 2018 Sales of plant-based foods now exceed $3.7 billion in the US alone. — Abigail Higgins, Vox, "Why do people hate vegans so much?," 3 Nov. 2018 Guano is full of essential nitrogen—the stuff in fertilizer that helps plants grow—and flying flocks provide a robust supply. — Matt Simon, WIRED, "Rats! Coral Reefs Aren't Getting the Bird Poop They Need," 11 July 2018 Native SonEven the SF Bay ferries are crowded these days His place at 1069 Howard used to be a printing plant in the days when San Francisco was the center of a large printing industry. — Carl Nolte, SFChronicle.com, "At the Box SF, previous eras’ castoffs prove valuable today," 8 July 2018 Last year in 15 Ford plants around the world, the car company began outfitting employees in exoskeletons. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Bionic Knee Replacements Are Powered By Your Walk," 30 Jan. 2019 The remaining issue is that, at the conditions involved in solar thermal plants, the copper on the material would react with the carbon dioxide, forming a copper oxide and releasing carbon monoxide. — John Timmer, Ars Technica, "New material could up efficiency of concentrated solar power," 19 Oct. 2018 The latest stunt follows a series of staged break-ins by Greenpeace activists in French nuclear plants. — Fox News, "Greenpeace activists crash Superman-shaped drone into French nuclear plant," 2 Oct. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'plant.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for plant

Verb

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

Noun

Middle English plante, from Old English, from Latin planta

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Dictionary Entries near plant

planospore

plan position indicator

Statistics for plant

Last Updated

17 Mar 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for plant

The first known use of plant was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for plant

plant

verb

English Language Learners Definition of plant

(Entry 1 of 2)

: to put (a seed, flower, or plant) in the ground to grow

: to fill (an area) with seeds, flowers, or plants

: to put or place (something) in the ground

plant

noun

English Language Learners Definition of plant (Entry 2 of 2)

: a living thing that grows in the ground, usually has leaves or flowers, and needs sun and water to survive

: a building or factory where something is made

US : the land, buildings, and equipment of an organization

See the full definition for plant in the English Language Learners Dictionary

plant

verb

\ ˈplant

planted; planting

Kids Definition of plant

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to place in the ground to grow We'll plant seeds in the spring.

2 : to fill with seeds or plants plant a garden

3 : to set firmly in the ground They planted posts for a fence.

4 : to place firmly He planted himself on the couch.

5 : to introduce as a thought or idea

6 : to place (someone or something) secretly … the teacher thought that he was planted in the audience to pep up the discussion …— E. L. Konigsburg, Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

plant

noun

Kids Definition of plant (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : any member of the kingdom of many-celled mostly photosynthetic living things (as mosses, ferns, grasses, and trees) that lack a nervous system or sense organs and the ability to move about and that have cellulose cell walls

2 : the buildings and equipment of an industrial business or an institution a power plant