plot
a secret plan or scheme to accomplish some purpose, especially a hostile, unlawful, or evil purpose: a plot to overthrow the government.
Also called storyline. the plan, scheme, or main story of a literary or dramatic work, as a play, novel, or short story.
a small piece or area of ground: a garden plot;burial plot.
a measured piece or parcel of land: a house on a two-acre plot.
a plan, map, diagram, or other graphic representation, as of land, a building, etc.
a list, timetable, or scheme dealing with any of the various arrangements for the production of a play, motion picture, etc.: According to the property plot, there should be a lamp stage left.
a chart showing the course of a craft, as a ship or airplane.
Artillery. a point or points located on a map or chart: target plot.
to plan secretly, especially something hostile or evil: to plot mutiny.
to mark on a plan, map, or chart, as the course of a ship or aircraft.
to draw a plan or map of, as a tract of land or a building.
to divide (land) into plots.
to determine and mark (points), as on plotting paper, by means of measurements or coordinates.
to draw (a curve) by means of points so marked.
to represent by means of such a curve.
to devise or construct the plot of (a play, novel, etc.).
to prepare a list, timetable, or scheme of (production arrangements), as for a play or motion picture:The stage manager hadn't plotted the set changes until one day before the dress rehearsal.
to make (a calculation) by graph.
to plan or scheme secretly; form a plot; conspire.
to devise or develop a literary or dramatic plot.
to be marked or located by means of measurements or coordinates, as on plotting paper.
Origin of plot
1synonym study For plot
word story For plot
In the mid-16th century, plot was used to refer to a map, ground plan, sketch, or written outline. At about the same time, it also came to mean “a secret, usually evil plan”; the verb meaning “to plan secretly, devise” comes from that sense of the noun. Plot in the sense “a storyline or main story of a play or novel” dates from the early 17th century.
Other words for plot
Other words from plot
- plot·ful, adjective
- plot·less, adjective
- plot·less·ness, noun
- out·plot, verb (used with object), out·plot·ted, out·plot·ting.
- o·ver·plot, verb, o·ver·plot·ted, o·ver·plot·ting.
- pre·plot, verb (used with object), pre·plot·ted, pre·plot·ting.
- re·plot, verb (used with object), re·plot·ted, re·plot·ting.
- un·plot·ted, adjective
- un·plot·ting, adjective
- well-plot·ted, adjective
Words Nearby plot
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use plot in a sentence
What followed, prosecutors said, was a criminal plot by his underlings to cyberstalk the couple.
Four ex-eBay employees to admit guilt in cyberstalking plot | Verne Kopytoff | September 23, 2020 | FortuneCounseling, rehab, a lot of medication, trial and error, quitting drinking, and support from family and friends have essentially kept me here and with the plot.
Over subsequent days, the hacker met with the employee multiple times to hash out the plot, unaware that the FBI was listening in.
The FBI broke up a Russian hacker plot to extort millions from Tesla | Aaron Pressman | August 28, 2020 | FortuneAfter rejecting all possible sources of error they could think of, the researchers came up with three explanations that would fit the size and shape of the bump in their data plots.
Dark Matter Experiment Finds Unexplained Signal | Natalie Wolchover | June 17, 2020 | Quanta MagazineAnd, if you’ve forgotten, here’s the plot summary, as told by Anya Dubner.
Does Hollywood Still Have a Princess Problem? (Ep. 394) | Stephen J. Dubner | October 24, 2019 | Freakonomics
When communism was a threat, it was construed as a communist plot.
But his account of a dissident plot involving Gambian expats using U.S. weapons is similar to what Faal told the FBI.
The Shadowy U.S. Veteran Who Tried to Overthrow a Country | Jacob Siegel | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTAnother member of the plot took care of the ammo along with black uniforms, night-vision equipment, and body armor.
The Shadowy U.S. Veteran Who Tried to Overthrow a Country | Jacob Siegel | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTThey were able to purchase weapons and plot attacks on the island without much interference.
Of Cuban Spies, a Baby, and a Filmmaker: The Strange Tale of the Cuban Five | Nina Strochlic | December 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe plot was a string of anecdotes from the senseless shootings of friends that Brinsley knew.
It was thanks to the discovery of this plot that the Marshal first got information of his enemies' projected advance.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-PattisonBut Magellan learned of their wicked plot in time to defeat them, and he punished them as they deserved.
Alila, Our Little Philippine Cousin | Mary Hazelton WadeWhile he grieved over the loss of our little one, you conceived a vile plot to 'get even,' Oh, you—liar!
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxIt was assuming a great deal to tell a woman that he saw through her plot to disenchant him with a rival.
Ancestors | Gertrude AthertonThe friends so overacted their part, that Jane immediately saw through the plot.
Madame Roland, Makers of History | John S. C. Abbott
British Dictionary definitions for plot (1 of 2)
/ (plɒt) /
a secret plan to achieve some purpose, esp one that is illegal or underhand: a plot to overthrow the government
the story or plan of a play, novel, etc
military a graphic representation of an individual or tactical setting that pinpoints an artillery target
mainly US a diagram or plan, esp a surveyor's map
lose the plot informal to lose one's ability or judgment in a given situation
to plan secretly (something illegal, revolutionary, etc); conspire
(tr) to mark (a course, as of a ship or aircraft) on a map
(tr) to make a plan or map of
to locate and mark (one or more points) on a graph by means of coordinates
to draw (a curve) through these points
(tr) to construct the plot of (a literary work)
Origin of plot
1British Dictionary definitions for plot (2 of 2)
/ (plɒt) /
a small piece of land: a vegetable plot
(tr) to arrange or divide (land) into plots
Origin of plot
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for plot
The organization of events in a work of fiction.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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