Skip to definition.
Get the FREE one-click dictionary software for Windows or the iPhone/iPad and Android apps


Adjective: plain (plainer,plainest)  pleyn
  1. Clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
    "made his meaning plain"; "it is plain that he is no reactionary"; "in plain view";
    - apparent, evident, manifest, palpable, patent, unmistakable, unmistakeable
     
  2. Not mixed with extraneous elements
    "plain water";
    - sheer, unmingled, unmixed
     
  3. Without modification, esp. without any attempt to soften or disguise
    "the plain and unvarnished truth";
    - unvarnished
     
  4. Lacking embellishment or ornamentation
    "a plain hair style";
    - bare, spare, unembellished, unornamented
     
  5. Lacking in physical beauty or proportion
    "a plain girl with a freckled face";
    - homely [N. Amer], unhandsome
     
  6. Not elaborate or elaborated; simple
    "plain food"; "stuck to the plain facts"; "a plain blue suit"; "a plain rectangular brick building"
     
  7. Lacking patterns especially in colour
    - unpatterned
Noun: plain  pleyn
  1. Extensive tract of level open land
    "they emerged from the woods onto a vast open plain";
    - field, champaign, flatland
     
  2. A basic knitting stitch made by putting the needle through the front of the stitch from the lefthand side
    - knit, knit stitch, plain stitch
Adverb: plain  pleyn
  1. Unmistakably; visibly clear; in an evident manner
    "he is plain stubborn";
    - obviously, evidently, manifestly, patently, apparently, plainly, obvs [non-standard, informal], clearly
Verb: plain  pleyn
Usage: archaic
  1. Express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
    - complain, kick [informal], sound off, kvetch [N. Amer, informal], moan

Sounds like: place, p, plain

Derived forms: plainer, plainest, plains, plaining, plained

See also: austere, bare, chaste, direct, dry, featureless, homely, inelaborate, literal, mere, obvious, pure, severe, simple, solid-colored [US], solid-coloured [Brit, Cdn], stark, stern, tailored, trim, unadorned, unattractive, undecorated, unelaborate, unpretentious, unrhetorical, vanilla [informal]

Type of: dry land, earth, ground, knitting stitch, land, solid ground, terra firma

Antonym: cheer, fancy

Encyclopedia: Plain, WI