What does "plaster" mean?
A paste applied to the skin for healing or cosmetic purposes.
Plaster
/ˈplɑː.stə/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A paste applied to the skin for healing or cosmetic purposes.
- Grammar: plaster is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: adhesive plaster, plasterwork, ace bandage, adherent.
- Useful contrasts: expose, free, lathing.
- Usage evidence: On Christmas Day, Tom still had his right leg in plaster.
How to use "plaster"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "plaster" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "plaster" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "plaster" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "plaster" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "plaster" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "adhesive plaster" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "plaster", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A paste applied to the skin for healing or cosmetic purposes. uncountable
- 2 adhesive tape used in dressing wounds wordnet
- 3 A small adhesive bandage to cover a minor wound; a sticking plaster. British, Canada, New-Zealand, countable
- 4 a surface of hardened plaster (as on a wall or ceiling) wordnet
- 5 A mixture of lime or gypsum, sand, and water, sometimes with the addition of fibres, that hardens to a smooth solid and is used for coating walls and ceilings. uncountable
"Near-synonym: stucco (dedicated term for exterior type in some dialects)"
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 a medical dressing consisting of a soft heated mass of meal or clay that is spread on a cloth and applied to the skin to treat inflamed areas or improve circulation etc. wordnet
- 7 A similar material used for exterior walls. countable, uncountable
- 8 a mixture of lime or gypsum with sand and water; hardens into a smooth solid; used to cover walls and ceilings wordnet
- 9 A cast made of plaster of Paris and gauze; a plaster cast. countable
- 10 any of several gypsum cements; a white powder (a form of calcium sulphate) that forms a paste when mixed with water and hardens into a solid; used in making molds and sculptures and casts for broken limbs wordnet
- 11 Plaster of Paris. uncountable
Verb
- 1 To cover or coat something with plaster; to render. transitive
"to plaster a wall"
- 2 dress by covering with a therapeutic substance wordnet
- 3 To apply a plaster to. transitive
"to plaster a wound"
- 4 coat with plaster wordnet
- 5 To smear with some viscous or liquid substance. transitive
"Her face was plastered with mud."
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 apply a heavy coat to wordnet
- 7 To hide or cover up, as if with plaster; to cover thickly. transitive
"The radio station plastered the buses and trains with its advertisement."
- 8 apply a plaster cast to wordnet
- 9 To bombard heavily or overwhelmingly; to overwhelm (with weapons fire). figuratively, transitive
"Yeah, if you think that was bad... having, obviously, here, being people in the modern day and knowing something about the historical tactics used at the Battle of Samar, we did have, at one point, the American battleline sailing itself into a rain squall, staying in the rain squall, using large numbers of destroyers (with, obviously, all their smoke generators) to increase the cover in the rain squall and maintain it when the wet squall seemed to start dying off, and, through that, they just went "Right, activate radar, hello everybody, we can see you, you can't see us", and plastered everything in 14-and-16-inch gunfire until everything was broken, burning, and not able to fire back, and then they popped out for the coup de grâce."
- 10 affix conspicuously wordnet
- 11 To smooth over. figuratively, transitive
- 12 cover conspicuously or thickly, as by pasting something on wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"On Christmas Day, Tom still had his right leg in plaster."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "plaster"?
Common synonyms include: adhesive plaster, plasterwork, ace bandage, adherent, adhesive, adhesive bandage.
How do you use "plaster" in a sentence?
On Christmas Day, Tom still had his right leg in plaster.
How do you pronounce "plaster"?
Pronounced /ˈplɑː.stə/.
Etymology
From Middle English plaster, plastre, from Old English plaster, from late Latin plastrum, shortened from Classical Latin emplastrum (“a plaster, bandage”); later reinforced by Anglo-Norman plastre. The verb is from Middle English plastren, from the noun.