plume

noun \ ˈplüm \

Updated on: 9 May 2018

Definition of plume

1 : a feather of a bird: such as

a : a large conspicuous or showy feather

b : contour feather

c : plumage

d : a cluster of distinctive feathers

2 a : material (such as a feather, cluster of feathers, or a tuft of hair) worn as an ornament

b : a token of honor or prowess : prize

3 : something resembling a feather (as in shape, appearance, or lightness): such as

a : a plumose appendage of a plant

b : an elongated and usually open and mobile column or band (as of smoke, exhaust gases, or blowing snow)

c : an animal structure having a main shaft bearing many hairs or filamentous parts; especially : a full bushy tail

d : any of several columns of molten rock rising from the earth's lower mantle that are theorized to drive tectonic plate movement and to underlie hot spots

See plume defined for English-language learners

See plume defined for kids

Examples of plume in a Sentence

a hat with bright ostrich plumes
the Nobel Prize for Literature is the plume that all authors covet

Recent Examples of plume from the Web

The volcano's eruptions, which included oozing lava flows and plumes of ash, started Thursday.

— dennis romero /, NBC News, "Hawaii volcano mellows, opening door to return for some evacuees," 6 May 2018
Then came a towering plume of pink smoke on Thursday and a magnitude 6.9 earthquake, the island’s largest in 42 years, on Friday afternoon.

— umair irfan, Vox, "Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano is squirting lava and toxic gas through new cracks in the Earth," 6 May 2018
The talk at parties was about a toxic plume from a landfill, dioxane, and contaminants in the soil from a nearby nuclear laboratory.

— bob morris, Town & Country, "A Users Guide to Bottled Water," 3 May 2018
Gases unleashed by the damage exploded, sending plumes of radioactive particles like iodine, cesium, and plutonium into the atmosphere.

— vince beiser, WIRED, "The Robot Assault On Fukushima," 26 Apr. 2018
Nicknamed the iPhone of e-cigarettes, Juuls resemble thumb drives, produce little plume, and smell like fruit or other flavorings, making them so concealable that students can vape in class.

— kate zernike, New York Times, "F.D.A. Cracks Down on ‘Juuling’ Among Teenagers," 24 Apr. 2018
Two years ago, after years of mounting evidence that the salty canals were helping fuel a massive underground saltwater plume, county environmental regulators confirmed canal water had begun leaking into the bay.

— jenny staletovich, miamiherald, "County moves toward using wastewater in FPL canals, but won’t set water standards yet | Miami Herald," 10 Apr. 2018
Demonstrations at the fence dividing the Gaza Strip and Israel turned deadly again Friday, as Palestinians burned tires that sent up plumes of smoke and some tried to cross the border amid Israeli military gunfire.

— rory jones, WSJ, "Eight Die as Protests Resume at Gaza-Israel Fence," 7 Apr. 2018
The city was aided by the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund, which dispatched a mobile van from California to track the toxic benzene plume.

— Time, "'Nothing Short of Catastrophic.' Hurricane Harvey's Toxic Impact Worse Than Publicly Reported, Records Show," 22 Mar. 2018

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

Illustration of plume

Origin and Etymology of plume

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin pluma small soft feather — more at fleece

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

plume Synonyms

Synonyms

accolade, award, blue ribbon, decoration, distinction, honor, kudo, premium, prize;

applause, bravo, encomium, eulogy, hallelujah, homage, paean, panegyric, plaudit, tribute;

citation, commendation, compliment, honorable mention;

Other Geology Terms

anthracite, boulder, cwm, erratic, igneous, intrusive, mesa, sedimentary, silt, swale

plume

verb

Definition of plume

plumed; pluming

transitive verb

1 a : to provide or deck with feathers

b : to array showily

2 : to indulge (oneself) in pride with an obvious or vain display of self-satisfaction

3 of a bird

a : to preen and arrange the feathers of (itself)

b : to preen and arrange (feathers)

Examples of plume in a Sentence

that jerk plumes himself on his supposed athletic skills

Recent Examples of plume from the Web

This occurred when exhaust plumes from the Falcon 9 rocket's second stage depleted plasma levels across a 900-km wide area, which the scientists say probably caused about a 1-meter error in GPS navigation programs.

— eric berger, Ars Technica, "SpaceX launch last year punched huge, temporary hole in the ionosphere," 22 Mar. 2018
Heavy black smoke plumed from the building by the time fire crews arrived.

— keri blakinger, Houston Chronicle, "Fryer sparks overnight fire at Houston tofu maker's warehouse," 10 Mar. 2018

First Known Use of plume

15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

plume Synonyms

Synonyms

flatter, pride;

Related Words

boast, brag, crow, swagger, vaunt;

congratulate, felicitate;

Other Birds Terms

aerie, bunting, clutch, covey, hackle, ratite, rictus, ruff, skein, zygodactyl

PLUME Defined for English Language Learners

plume

noun

Definition of plume for English Language Learners

: a feather or group of feathers on a bird
: a decoration made of feathers or something similar
: something (such as smoke, steam, or water) that rises into the air in a tall, thin shape