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| plant [ plant ] |
noun (plural plants) |
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| Definition: |
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1. vegetable organism: a photosynthetic organism that has cellulose cell walls, cannot move of its own accord, grows in soil or water, and usually has green leaves. Kingdom Plantae.
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2. smaller vegetable organism: a vegetable organism that does not have a permanent woody stem, e.g. a flower or herb rather than a bush or tree
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3. gardening cutting or seedling: a cutting or seedling that is ready to be planted
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4. industry factory: a factory, power station, or other large industrial complex where something is manufactured or produced
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5. industry equipment and machinery: the equipment and machinery necessary for carrying on an industrial or engineering activity
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6. something dishonestly hidden to incriminate somebody: something secretly put somewhere so that it can be discovered later, e.g. by the police, in order to incriminate somebody
(
informal
)
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7. somebody secretly introduced into group: somebody who has been placed secretly in an organization in order to spy on it or to influence its behavior
(
informal
)
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verb (past and past participle plant·ed, present participle plant·ing, 3rd person present singular plants) |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive and intransitive verb put something into ground to grow: to put something such as a seed, plant, or tuber into the ground to enable it to grow
  plant a tree
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2. transitive and intransitive verb use area for growing plants: to place young plants or sow seeds in an area of ground
wanted to plant that bed with pansies
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3. transitive verb put something down firmly: to put something down or take a position firmly or decisively
planted the stakes about five feet apart
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4. transitive verb put idea in somebody's mind: to introduce an idea into somebody's mind
She planted the notion in my head that we should move.
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5. transitive verb place something in concealed position: to place something such as an explosive or listening device where it will not be easily found by others
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6. transitive verb hide something to incriminate somebody: to put something secretly where it can be discovered later, e.g. by the police, in order to incriminate somebody
(
informal
)
plant evidence
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7. transitive verb introduce spy into group: to introduce somebody into an organization in order to spy on it or to influence the behavior of its members
(
informal
)
planted an informer in the group
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8. transitive verb strike somebody: to land a blow on somebody
(
informal
)
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9. transitive verb fisheries put fish in body of water: to place spawn, young fish, or shellfish into an area of water so that they will develop there
plant oysters
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10. transitive verb establish colony or colonists: to establish a colony or settlement in a place, or send people to a place as colonists or settlers
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| [Pre-12th century. < Latin plantare "plant in the ground" < planta "sole of the foot"] |
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| plant·a·ble adjective |
| plant·like adjective |
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