ply
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ply¹
- /plaɪ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -aɪ
Where it comes from
From Middle English pleit, plit, plite (“a fold, pleat, wrinkle; braid, strand in a braided cord, ply”), from Anglo-Norman pli, plei, pleit, and Middle French pli, ploy, ply (“a fold, pleat; joint in armour; situation, state”) (modern French pli (“a fold, pleat”)), from plier, ployer (“to bend, fold”), from Latin plicāre (“to bend, fold, roll up”), from Proto-Indo-European *pleḱ- (“to fold, plait, weave”).
noun ply · plies · plys
- A layer of material. two-ply toilet paper
- A strand that, twisted together with other strands, makes up rope or yarn. To make the hail rod a rope of straw is the first thing necessary; it must be made of ripe wheat straw, soaked and twisted, plaited with three strand and then with four ply, making twelve strand to the rope.
- Clipping of plywood The compartment ceiling panels are of plastic material backed with ply or hardboard panels.
- In two-player sequential games, a "half-turn" or a move made by one of the players. He proposed to build Deep Purple, a super-computer capable of 24-ply look-ahead for chess.
- A condition, a state. You may be ſure, in the ply I was now taking, I had no objection to the propoſal, and was rather a tiptoe for its accompliſhment.
ply²
- /plaɪ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -aɪ
Where it comes from
From Middle English plīen, pli, plie (“to bend, fold, mould, shape; to be flexible; to be submissive, humble oneself; to compel someone to submit”), from Anglo-Norman plier, plaier, pleier, ploier, and Middle French plier, ployer (“to bend, fold; to be submissive; to compel someone to submit”) (modern French plier, ployer), from Old French ploiier, pleier (“to fold”), from Latin plicāre (“to fold”); see further at etymology 1. The word is cognate with Catalan plegar (“to bend, fold”), Italian piegare (“to bend, fold, fold up”), Old Occitan plegar, plejar, pleyar (“to fold”) (modern Occitan plegar), Spanish plegar (“to fold”).
verb plies · plying · plied
- To bend; to fold; to mould; (figuratively) to adapt, to modify; to change (a person's) mind, to cause (a person) to submit. And now when at length the Vineyard has ſhed its late Leaves, and the cold Northwind ſhook from the Groves their Honours; even then the active Swain extends his Cares to the enſuing Year, and cloſe plys the deſolate forſaken Vine, cutting off the ſuperfluous Roots with Saturn's crooked Hook, and for
- To bend, to flex; to be bent by something, to give way or yield (to a force, etc.). The Oak Upbraided the Willow, that it was Weak and Wavering, and gave way to Every Blaſt. […] Some very little while after This Diſpute, it Blew a Violent Storm. The Willow Ply’d, and gave way to the Guſt, and ſtill recover’d it ſelf again, without receiving any Damage: But the Oak was Stubborn, and
ply³
- /plaɪ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -aɪ
Where it comes from
From apply; compare Middle English plīen, pli, plie, pleie (“to place (something) around, on, or over, to cover; to apply, use; to strive”), short for aplīen, applīen (“to combine, join; to attach; to assemble; to use, be of use; to allot; to apply; to inflict; to go; to ply, steer; to comply, submit”), from Old French applier, aplier, aploier (“to bend; to apply”), from Latin applicāre, present active infinitive of applicō (“to apply; to attach, join; to add”), from ad- (“to, towards”) + plicō (“to bend, fold, roll up”); see further at etymology 1.
verb plies · plying · plied
- To work at (something) diligently. He plied his trade as carpenter for forty-three years.
- To wield or use (a tool, a weapon, etc.) steadily or vigorously. He plied his ax with bloody results.
- To press upon; to urge persistently. to ply someone with questions or solicitations
- To persist in offering something to, especially for the purpose of inducement or persuasion. to ply someone with drink
- To travel over (a route) regularly. to ply the seven seas
- To work diligently. […] Ere halfe theſe Authors be read, which will ſoon be with plying hard, and dayly, they cannot chooſe but be maſters of any ordinary proſe.
- To manoeuvre a sailing vessel so that the direction of the wind changes from one side of the vessel to the other; to work to windward, to beat, to tack. Weighed anchor about five morn, and plied till about noon, and then anchored. This day, at morn, went about the general to council: the result was, the fleet should ply near, as with convenience, to the Texel, to prevent a conjunction of those ships there with Admiral [Maarten] Tromp; […]
noun
- A bent; a direction.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: cater, run, supply, provide, layer, cover, fold, tuck, thickness, strata, crease, envelope, exercise, wield, membrane, kung
Translations
Every language
noun in two-player sequential games, a "half-turn" or a move made by one of the players
| Deutsch | Halbzug |
|---|---|
| Русский | полухо́д poluxód |
verb (transitive, obsolete) to bend; to fold
| Français | plier |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | biegen, falten |
| Русский | скру́чивать skrúčivatʹ, сгиба́ть sgibátʹ |
verb (intransitive) to bend, flex; to be bent by something, to give way or yield
| Русский | сгиба́ть sgibátʹ |
|---|
verb to work at (something) diligently
| Русский | усе́рдно рабо́тать usérdno rabótatʹ |
|---|
verb to persist in offering something to
| Русский | по́тчевать pótčevatʹ |
|---|
verb to travel over regularly
| Русский | курси́ровать kursírovatʹ |
|---|
Talk about this word "ply." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/ply. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. ply. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/ply "ply." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/ply.Cite this
@misc{ply_2026,
title = {ply},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/ply},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
