Adjacent Words

Plastic definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PLAS'TIC, a. [Gr. to form.] Having the power to give form or fashion to a mass of matter; as the plastic hand of the Creator; the plastic virtue of nature.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: capable of being molded or modeled (especially of earth or clay or other soft material); "plastic substances such as wax or clay" [syn: fictile, moldable, plastic]
2: capable of being influenced or formed; "the plastic minds of children"; "a pliant nature" [syn: plastic, pliant]
3: forming or capable of forming or molding or fashioning; "a formative influence"; "a formative experience" [syn: formative, shaping, plastic] n
1: generic name for certain synthetic or semisynthetic materials that can be molded or extruded into objects or films or filaments or used for making e.g. coatings and adhesives
2: a card (usually plastic) that assures a seller that the person using it has a satisfactory credit rating and that the issuer will see to it that the seller receives payment for the merchandise delivered; "do you take plastic?" [syn: credit card, charge card, charge plate, plastic]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Latin plasticus of molding, from Greek plastikos, from plassein to mold, form Date: 1632 1. formative, creative <plastic forces in nature> 2. a. capable of being molded or modeled <plastic clay> b. capable of adapting to varying conditions ; pliable <ecologically plastic animals> 3. sculptural 4. made or consisting of a plastic 5. capable of being deformed continuously and permanently in any direction without rupture 6. of, relating to, or involving plastic surgery 7. having a quality suggestive of mass-produced plastic goods; especially artificial 4 <plastic smiles> 8. relating to, characterized by, or exhibiting neural plasticity Synonyms: plastic, pliable, pliant, ductile, malleable, adaptable mean susceptible of being modified in form or nature. plastic applies to substances soft enough to be molded yet capable of hardening into the desired fixed form <plastic materials allow the sculptor greater freedom>. pliable suggests something easily bent, folded, twisted, or manipulated <pliable rubber tubing>. pliant may stress flexibility and sometimes connote springiness <an athletic shoe with a pliant sole>. ductile applies to what can be drawn out or extended with ease <ductile metals such as copper>. malleable applies to what may be pressed or beaten into shape <the malleable properties of gold>. adaptable implies the capability of being easily modified to suit other conditions, needs, or uses <computer hardware that is adaptable>. II. noun Date: 1905 1. a plastic substance; specifically any of numerous organic synthetic or processed materials that are mostly thermoplastic or thermosetting polymers of high molecular weight and that can be made into objects, films, or filaments 2. credit cards used for payment — called also plastic money • plasticky adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & adj. --n. 1 any of a number of synthetic polymeric substances that can be given any required shape. 2 (attrib.) made of plastic (plastic bag). --adj. 1 capable of being moulded; pliant; supple. 2 moulding or giving form to clay, wax, etc. 3 Biol. exhibiting an adaptability to environmental changes. 4 (esp. in philosophy) formative, creative. Phrases and idioms: plastic arts art forms involving modelling or moulding, e.g. sculpture and ceramics, or art involving the representation of solid objects with three-dimensional effects. plastic bomb a bomb containing plastic explosive. plastic explosive a putty-like explosive capable of being moulded by hand. plastic surgeon a qualified practitioner of plastic surgery. plastic surgery the process of reconstructing or repairing parts of the body by the transfer of tissue, either in the treatment of injury or for cosmetic reasons. Derivatives: plastically adv. plasticity n. plasticize v.tr. (also -ise). plasticization n. plasticizer n. plasticky adj. Etymology: F plastique or L plasticus f. Gk plastikos f. plasso mould

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Plastic Plas"tic (pl[a^]s"t[i^]k), a. [L. plasticus, Gr. ?, fr. ? to form, mold: cf. F. plastique.] 1. Having the power to give form or fashion to a mass of matter; as, the plastic hand of the Creator. --Prior. See plastic Nature working to his end. --Pope. 2. Capable of being molded, formed, or modeled, as clay or plaster; -- used also figuratively; as, the plastic mind of a child. 3. Pertaining or appropriate to, or characteristic of, molding or modeling; produced by, or appearing as if produced by, molding or modeling; -- said of sculpture and the kindred arts, in distinction from painting and the graphic arts. Medallions . . . fraught with the plastic beauty and grace of the palmy days of Italian art. --J. S. Harford.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(plastics) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. Plastic is a material which is produced from oil by a chemical process and which is used to make many objects. It is light in weight and does not break easily. ...a wooden crate, sheltered from wetness by sheets of plastic... A lot of the plastics that carmakers are using cannot be recycled. ...a black plastic bag. N-MASS: oft N n 2. If you describe something as plastic, you mean that you think it looks or tastes unnatural or not real. ...plastic airline food... ADJ [disapproval] 3. If you use plastic or plastic money to pay for something, you pay for it with a credit card instead of using cash. (INFORMAL) Using plastic to pay for an order is simplicity itself. 4. Something that is plastic is soft and can easily be made into different shapes. The mud is smooth, gray, soft, and plastic as butter. ADJ • plasticity ...the plasticity of the flesh.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Formative. 2. Soft, pliable, easily moulded.

Moby Thesaurus

Bakelite, Buna, Celluloid, Formica, Lucite, Mylar, PVC, Perspex, Plexiglas, Styrofoam, Teflon, able to adapt, acaroid resins, accessible, accordant, acetate, acetate nitrate, acquiescent, acrylic, adaptable, adaptive, adhesive, adjustable, alkyd, alterable, alterative, amber, amenable, aminoplast, anal, apt, artificial, average, bendable, bending, biddable, bogus, bourgeois, bright, casein plastic, cast plastic, cellophane, cellulose acetate, cellulose ether, cellulose nitrate, cellulose plastic, cellulosic, changeable, cheap, checkered, chintzy, clayey, clever, colophony, common, commonplace, complaisant, compliant, compulsive, concordant, conformable, conformist, conventional, corresponding, coumarone resins, coumarone-indene, counterfeit, crummy, docile, ductile, educable, elastic, epoxy, ersatz, ever-changing, extensible, extensile, extruded plastic, fabricable, facile, fake, fictile, flexible, flexile, flexuous, fluid, fluorocarbon plastic, formable, formal, formalistic, formational, formative, fossil resins, furane, garden, garden-variety, giving, gum rosin, gums, harmonious, imitation, impermanent, impressible, impressionable, in accord, in keeping, in line, in step, inexperienced, influenceable, instructable, intelligent, kaleidoscopic, kosher, lac resins, laminate, lignin, like putty, limber, lissome, lithe, lithesome, lot, malleable, manageable, many-sided, melamine, meretricious, metabolic, metamorphic, middle-class, mobile, modifiable, moldable, molded plastic, molding compounds, morphotic, motivated, movable, multiresin, mutable, neoprene, nitrate, no great shakes, nonuniform, normal, nylon, obedient, open, open-minded, ordinary, orthodox, other-directed, parcel, paste, pedantic, permutable, persuadable, persuasible, pervious, phenolic urea, pinchbeck, pine resins, plasmatic, plasmic, plat, pliable, pliant, plot, polyester, polymer, polymeric amide, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, precisianistic, protean, proteiform, protein plastic, protoplasmic, quick, ready, receptive, regular, resilient, resin, resin plastic, resina, resinate, resinoid, responsive, ripe for instruction, rosin, rubbery, run-of-mine, run-of-the-mill, schoolable, sensitive, sequacious, sham, shapable, shapeable, shoddy, silicone resin, soft, springy, square, straight, stuffy, suasible, submissive, suburban, suggestible, supple, susceptible, swayable, synthetic, synthetic fabric, synthetic resin, synthetic rubber, teachable, tetrafluoroethylene, thermoplastic, thermosetting plastic, thirsty for knowledge, tract, tractable, tractile, traditionalist, trainable, transient, transitory, unexceptional, unformed, unnoteworthy, unremarkable, unspectacular, uptight, urea, urea formaldehyde, usual, variable, vegetable resins, vinyl, waxy, weak, whippy, willing, willowy, workable, yielding