plat

1 of 5

verb (1)

ˈplat 

platted; platting

transitive verb

: plait

plat

2 of 5

noun (1)

: plait

plat

3 of 5

noun (2)

1

: a small piece of ground (such as a lot or quadrat) : plot

2

: a plan, map, or chart of a piece of land with actual or proposed features (such as lots)

also : the land represented

plat

4 of 5

verb (2)

platted; platting

transitive verb

: to make a plat of

plat

5 of 5

abbreviation

1

plateau

2

platoon

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• braid
• lace
• lacing
• plait

Noun (2)

• clearing
• field
• ground
• lot
• parcel
• plot
• tract

Examples of plat in a Sentence

Noun (1)

a plat of lace

Noun (2)

each settler was granted a plat to farm

plans to build a shopping center on the last undeveloped plat in town

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Later, tidy plats of cinder block-and-concrete houses for snowbirds and beach motels scattered Anna Maria Island as new properties developed along the gorgeous shore. —Tracey Minkin, Southern Living, 6 Sep. 2024

Penman alleges Cassilly rushed through and approved a plat, or land use plan, for property owned by his brother, Joseph Cassilly. —Ben Terzi, Baltimore Sun, 9 Mar. 2024

Verb

He’s got locs now, but before then, he could’ve been seen with his hair permed, straightened, platted, in an Afro, accessorized, and at times topped off with a funky hat or silk headscarf. —Julian Randall, Essence, 15 Oct. 2024

The first of the cemeteries opened in the early 1820s, and the three additional cemeteries were platted in the decades after. —Alexandria Burris, The Indianapolis Star, 13 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English platten, probably variant of pleiten "to fold, pleat entry 1," by generalization of the past tense and past participle forms platte, plattid, formed by analogy with thratte, past of threten "to make a threat, threaten"

Note: This etymology is suggested by Oxford English Dictionary, third edition, following E. J. Dobson, English Pronunciation, 1500-1700, vol. 2, p. 782. Middle English Dictionary lists platten as a separate verb, taken to be a verbal derivative of plat "flat, smooth," with "meaning influenced by pleiten."

Noun (1)

noun derivative of plat entry 1

Noun (2)

Middle English, probably alteration of plot

First Known Use

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1589, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing plat

• plat du jour

Kids Definition

plat

noun

ˈplat

1

: a small plot of ground

2

: a plan or map of an area with lots marked out

Legal Definition

plat

noun

ˈplat

: a plan, map, or chart of a piece of land with present or proposed features (as lots)

also : the land represented

Etymology

Noun

probably alteration of plot