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plank

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A long, broad and thick piece of timber.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

plangk
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈplæŋk

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. A long, broad and thick piece of timber, as opposed to a board which is less thick.

  2. An endorsed policy in the platform of a political party

  3. figurative

    A political issue that is of concern to a faction or a party of the people and the political position that is taken on that issue.

  4. Physical exercise in which one holds a pushup position for a measured length of time.

  5. That which supports or upholds.

  6. britishslang

    A stupid person, idiot.

verb

  1. transitive

    To bake (fish, etc.) on a piece of cedar lumber.

  2. transitivecolloquial

    To lay down, as on a plank or table; to stake or pay cash.

  3. transitive

    To harden, as hat bodies, by felting.

  4. To splice together the ends of slivers of wool, for subsequent drawing.

  5. intransitive

    To pose for a photograph while lying rigid, face down, arms at side, in an unusual place.

  6. transitive

    To cover something with planking.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced (estimated)
Frequency
Uncommon
Formality
Technical

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A long, broad and thick piece of timber, as opposed to a board which is less thick.

Used this way, plank is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use plank

  • “He planked the money on the table.”verb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

plank roadplank bedinch plankplank floorcentral plankmain plankplank bridgesingle plank

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • plank oververbCompound term

    Cover with planks.

  • plank downverbCompound term

    Drop heavily.

  • plank-bednounCompound term

    A bed of boards (without a mattress).

  • garboard planknounCompound term

    The first wale laid next to the keel of a wooden ship.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: long or broad and thick piece of timber

board

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.