plain meaning and definition

PLAIN noun

Definition of plain (noun)

1. extensive tract of level open land
   • "they emerged from the woods onto a vast open plain"; "he longed for the fields of his youth"
   • synonyms: champaign, field
2. a basic knitting stitch
   • synonyms: knit, knit stitch, plain stitch

PLAIN verb

Definition of plain (verb)

1. express complaints, discontent, displeasure, or unhappiness
   • "My mother complains all day"; "She has a lot to kick about"
   • synonyms: complain, kick, kvetch, quetch, sound off
   • antonym: cheer

PLAIN adjective

Definition of plain (adjective)

1. clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment
   • "the effects of the drought are apparent to anyone who sees the parched fields"; "evident hostility"; "manifest disapproval"; "patent advantages"; "made his meaning plain"; "it is plain that he is no reactionary"; "in plain view"
   • synonyms: apparent, evident, manifest, patent, unmistakable
2. not elaborate or elaborated; simple
   • "plain food"; "stuck to the plain facts"; "a plain blue suit"; "a plain rectangular brick building"
   • antonym: fancy
3. lacking patterns especially in color
   • synonyms: unpatterned
   • antonym: patterned
4. not mixed with extraneous elements
   • "plain water"; "sheer wine"; "not an unmixed blessing"
   • synonyms: sheer, unmingled, unmixed
5. free from any effort to soften to disguise
   • "the plain and unvarnished truth"; "the unvarnished candor of old people and children"
   • synonyms: unvarnished
6. lacking embellishment or ornamentation
   • "a plain hair style"; "unembellished white walls"; "functional architecture featuring stark unornamented concrete"
   • synonyms: bare, spare, unembellished, unornamented
7. lacking in physical beauty or proportion
   • "a homely child"; "several of the buildings were downright homely"; "a plain girl with a freckled face"
   • synonyms: homely

PLAIN adverb

Definition of plain (adverb)

1. unmistakably (`plain' is often used informally for `plainly')
   • "the answer is obviously wrong"; "she was in bed and evidently in great pain"; "he was manifestly too important to leave off the guest list"; "it is all patently nonsense"; "she has apparently been living here for some time"; "I thought he owned the property, but apparently not"; "You are plainly wrong"; "he is plain stubborn"
   • synonyms: apparently, evidently, manifestly, obviously, patently, plainly