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place definition

place (plās)

noun

  1. a square or court in a city
  2. a short street, often closed at one end
  3. space; room
  4. a particular area or locality; region
    1. the part of space occupied by a person or thing
    2. situation or state if I were in his place
  6. a city, town, or village
  7. a residence; dwelling; house and grounds
  8. a building or space devoted to a special purpose a place of amusement
  9. a particular spot on or part of the body or a surface a sore place on the leg
  10. a particular passage or page in a book, magazine, etc., esp. the point where one has temporarily stopped reading to mark one's place
  11. position or standing, esp. one of importance, accorded to one one's place in history
  12. a step or point in a sequence in the first place
  13. the customary, proper, or natural position, time, or character
  14. a space used, reserved, or customarily occupied by a person, as a seat in a theater, at a table, etc.
  15. an office; employment; position
  16. official position
  17. the duties of any position
  18. the duty, or business (of a person)
  19. in racing, the first, second, or third position at the finish, specif. the second position
  20. Arith. the position of a digit in a number (Ex.: in 12.3 the one is in the ten's place, the two in the unit's place, and the three in the tenth's place)

Etymology: OFr < L platea, a broad street (in LL, an open space) < Gr plateia, a street < platys, broad: see platy-

transitive verb placed, placing plac′·ing

    1. to put in a particular place, condition, or relation
    2. to put in an assigned or proper place, as in a sequence or series
    3. ☆ to identify by associating with the correct place or circumstances to place somebody's face
  2. to find employment or a position for; appoint to an office
  3. to arrange for a desired handling, treatment, or allocation of to place a shipment, to place a child for adoption
  4. to assign (a value)
  5. to make or give as an estimate
  6. to offer (a proposal, problem, etc.) to be considered
  7. to repose (confidence, trust, hope, etc.) in a person or thing
  8. to adjust (the voice) to head or chest register
  9. to finish in (a specified position) in a competition to place last

Etymology: Fr placer

intransitive verb

Sports to finish among the first three in a contest; specif., to finish second in a horse or dog race
place Idioms

give place

  1. to make room
  2. to yield

go places

☆
Slang to achieve success

in (or out of) place

  1. in (or out of) the customary, proper, or assigned place
  2. that is (or is not) fitting, proper, or timely

in place of

as a substitute for; instead of

know one's place

to be conscious of one's (inferior) position or rank in life and act accordingly

put someone in his (or her) place

to humble someone who is overstepping bounds

run in place

to move the legs alternately as in running, but remain in the same place, not going forward or backward

take place

to come into being; happen; occur

take the place of

to be a substitute for

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms place idiom

place Synonyms

place

n.

  1. Position

    station, point, spot; see position 1.

  2. Space

    room, compass, stead, void, distance, area, seat, volume, berth, reservation, accommodation; see also extent.

  3. Locality

    spot, locus, site, community, district, suburb, country, section, habitat, home, residence, abode, house, quarters; see also area 2, neighborhood, region 1.

  4. Rank

    status, position, station; see rank 3.

  5. An office

    position, situation, occupation; see job 1, profession 1, trade 2.

  6. A courtlike space

    square, park, plaza; see court 1, yard 1.

give place (to)

make room for, move over for, surrender to; see yield 3.

go places*

attain success, achieve, advance; see succeed 1.

in place

in order, arranged, fitting, timely, appropriate; see also fit 1, 2.

in place of

as a substitute for, instead, taking the place of; see instead of.

know one's place

adapt, accept one's station, remain acquiescent, remain in one's position; see conform.

out of place

  1. Lost

    mislaid, displaced, gone; see lost 1.

  2. Improper

    inappropriate, unsuitable, not fitting; see improper 1.

put someone in his place

humiliate, reprimand, derogate; see humble.

take place

occur, come into being, be; see happen 2.

take the place of

replace, act in one's stead, serve as proxy for; see substitute 2.


place

v.

  1. To put in a place

    locate, dispose, allot, allocate, settle, assign, deposit, distribute, put, plant, lodge, quarter, store, stow, set, situate, fix in, put in place, consign to a place, lay; see also install.

    Antonyms remove*, displace*, dislodge. *

  2. To put in order

    fix, arrange, group; see order 3.

  3. *To be among the winners

    conquer, overwhelm, gain victory; see defeat 1, win 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

place Usage Examples

Object

  • order: BACK TO TOP Can I place an order from overseas?

Converse of object

  • take: The next public course will take place on Friday 18th February in our training center in Aldgate, London.

Adjective modifier

  • first: What are My Chances to Get the First Place in Search Engine Listings?

Noun used with modifier

  • market: In a crowded market place I didn't think a new player would offer anything ⦠well ⦠erm ⦠new.

Preposition: of

  • worship: These two young men were strangers; they attended different places of worship on the Sabbath, for Stephen would attend the African synagogue.

Preposition: under

  • grill: Place under a preheated grill for 6-8 minutes, turning occasionally until tender and golden brown.
place usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

place quotes

Liquide constet inter virum et uxorem amorem sibi locum vindicare non posse. It is clearly certain that between man and wife love can claim no place.

-Andreas Capellanus   fl. late12c

It is a historical truth. No man can know where he is going unless he knows exactly where he has been and exactly how he arrived at his present place.

-Angelou, Maya originally MayaJohnson

From the cradle to the grave, Even if I misbehave, There's a place for me On government subsidy.

-Anonymous

place quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"place." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/place>

APA Style

place. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/place

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