Refine this word faster

Stronger alternatives Opposite tone Use in context Cross-language nuance

Plough

//plaʊ// name, noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Proper Noun

1
The brightest seven stars of the constellation Ursa Major. They are Alkaid, Mizar, Alioth, Megrez, Dubhe, Merak, and Phecda. British, common, name
"Later on, as I walked home / The Plough was showing, and Orion"
2
A surname.

Noun

1
A device pulled through the ground in order to break it open into furrows for planting.
"Meronyms: ploughshare, plowshare, share, moldboard, mouldboard, coulter, colter, jointer, chisel, ploughbeam, beam, ploughstaff, staff, hake"
2
a farm tool having one or more heavy blades to break the soil and cut a furrow prior to sowing wordnet
3
Any of several other tools or implements that cut and push material.; Ellipsis of snowplough. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
"It's been three hours since a plough came through here, and now you can hardly even tell that it did! [the snow keeps falling heavily]"
4
Any of several other tools or implements that cut and push material.; A joiner's plane for making grooves.
5
Any of several other tools or implements that cut and push material.; A bookbinder's implement for trimming or shaving off the edges of books.

Show 4 more definitions

6
The use of a plough; tillage.
"If you get it early ploughed and it lies all winter possibly, you find it an advantage to give it a second plough; but it does not invariably follow that we plough twice for our green crop."
7
Alternative form of Plough (Synonym of Ursa Major) alt-of, alternative
"Rising in the north-east fairly high in the sky, Arcturus may be found by following round the curve of the plough."
8
Alternative form of ploughland, an alternative name for a carucate or hide. alt-of, alternative
"c. 1350, Geoffrey Chaucer (attributed), The Tale of Gamelyn Johan, mine eldest son, shall have plowes five."
9
A yoga pose resembling a traditional plough, halāsana.

Verb

1
To use a plough on soil to prepare for planting. transitive
"I've still got to plough that field."
2
to break and turn over earth especially with a plow wordnet
3
To use a plough. intransitive
"Some days I have to plough from sunrise to sunset."
4
move in a way resembling that of a plow cutting into or going through the soil wordnet
5
To move with force.
"Trucks ploughed through the water to ferry flood victims to safety."

Show 7 more definitions

6
To knock over or run over (someone) without stopping. colloquial, transitive
"My brother ploughed me over."
7
To furrow; to make furrows, grooves, or ridges in.
"Let patient Octavia plough thy visage up / With her prepared nails."
8
To run through, as in sailing.
"With speed we plough the watery way."
9
To trim, or shave off the edges of, as a book or paper, with a plough.
10
To cut a groove in, as in a plank, or the edge of a board; especially, a rectangular groove to receive the end of a shelf or tread, the edge of a panel, a tongue, etc.
11
To fail (a student). UK, obsolete, transitive
"The good Professor scolded, predicted that they would all be either gulfed or ploughed."
12
To sexually penetrate, typically in a vigorous manner. transitive, vulgar
"I love just getting ploughed face down on my bed."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English plouh, plow, plugh(e), plough(e), plouw, from Old English plōh (“hide of land, ploughland”) and Old Norse plógr (“plough (the implement)”), both from Proto-Germanic *plōgaz, *plōguz (“plough”). Cognate with Scots pleuch, plou, North Frisian plog, West Frisian ploech, Low German Ploog, Dutch ploeg, Russian плуг (plug), German Pflug, Danish plov, Swedish and Norwegian plog, Icelandic plógur. Replaced Old English sulh (“plough, furrow”); see sullow.

Etymology 2

Etymology 3

From plough, a metonymic occupational surname for a plowwright or plowman.

Next best steps

Find stronger synonyms See usage examples Check pronunciation

Mini challenge

Unscramble this word: plough