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Plying

 - 5 dictionary results
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ply

1  [plahy] verb, plied, ply⋅ing.
Use Plying in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to work with or at diligently; employ busily; use: to ply the needle.
2. to carry on, practice, or pursue busily or steadily: to ply a trade.
3. to treat with or apply to (something) repeatedly (often fol. by with): to ply a fire with fresh fuel.
4. to assail persistently: to ply horses with a whip.
5. to supply with or offer something pressingly to: to ply a person with drink.
6. to address (someone) persistently or importunately, as with questions, solicitations, etc.; importune.
7. to pass over or along (a river, stream, etc.) steadily or on a regular basis: boats that ply the Mississippi.
–verb (used without object)
8. to run or travel regularly over a fixed course or between certain places, as a boat, bus, etc.
9. to perform one's work or office busily or steadily: to ply with the oars; to ply at a trade.
Origin:
1300–50; ME plien, aph. var. of aplien to apply

Related forms:
ply⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
2. follow, exercise.
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ply

2  [plahy] noun, plural plies, verb, plied, ply⋅ing.
–noun
1. a thickness or layer.
2. Automotive. a layer of reinforcing fabric for a tire.
3. a unit of yarn: single ply.
4. one of the sheets of veneer that are glued together to make plywood.
5. Informal. plywood.
6. bent, bias, or inclination.
–verb (used with object)
7. British Dialect. to bend, fold, or mold.
–verb (used without object)
8. Obsolete. to bend, incline, or yield.
Origin:
1300–50; ME plien (v.) < MF plier to fold, bend, var. of ployer, OF pleier < L plicāre to fold; see fold 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Plying
ply 1   (plī)   
tr.v.   plied (plīd), ply·ing, plies (plīz)

  1. To join together, as by molding or twisting.

  2. To double over (cloth, for example).

n.   pl. plies (plīz)

  1. A layer, as of doubled-over cloth or of paperboard.

  2. One of the sheets of wood glued together to form plywood.

  3. A layer of rubber-coated fabric, often of nylon or polyester cords, forming the body of an automobile tire.

  4. One of the strands twisted together to make yarn, rope, or thread. Often used in combination: three-ply cord.

  5. A bias; an inclination.


[Middle English plien, from Old French plier, alteration of pleier, from Latin plicāre, to fold; see plek- in Indo-European roots.]
ply 2   (plī)   
v.   plied (plīd), ply·ing, plies (plīz)

v.   tr.

  1. To use diligently; wield: ply a knitting needle.

  2. To engage in diligently; practice: plied the carpenter's trade. See Synonyms at handle.

  3. To traverse or sail over regularly: Trading ships plied the routes between coastal ports.

  4. To continue offering something to; ensure that (another) is abundantly served: plied their guests with excellent food.

  5. To assail vigorously.

v.   intr.

  1. To traverse a route or course regularly: The boat plies between the islands on a weekly schedule.

  2. To perform or work diligently or regularly: plied at the weaver's trade for 20 years.

  3. Nautical To work against the wind by a zigzag course; tack.


[Middle English plien, from applien, to apply; see apply.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

ply  (n.)
"layer," 1470, from M.Fr. pli "a fold" (13c.), from O.Fr. ploi (12c.), from stem of ployer (later pleier) "to bend, to fold," from L. plicare "to fold, lay" see ply (v.)). Now mainly in plywood (1907), which is called that because the layers are so arranged that the grain of one runs at right angles to that of the next.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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