Definition of 'place'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present
tense places
, present participle placing
, past tense, past participle placed
1. countable noun
A place is any point, building, area, town, or country.
2. singular noun
3. countable noun
You can refer to
somewhere that provides a service, such as a
hotel,
restaurant, or institution, as a particular kind of place.
4.
See
take place
5. singular noun
Place can be used after 'any', 'no', 'some', or 'every' to mean '
anywhere', '
nowhere', 'somewhere', or '
everywhere'.
[mainly US, informal]
6. adverb [ADVERB after verb]
7. countable noun
8. countable noun
9. countable noun [with poss]
Someone's or something's place in a society, system, or situation is their position in relation to other people
or things.
10. countable noun [usually singular]
Your place in a race or
competition is your position in relation to the other
competitors. If you are in first place, you are
ahead of all the other competitors.
11. countable noun
12. singular noun [oft NOUN to-infinitive]
A good place to do something in a situation or activity is a good time or stage at which to do it.
13. countable noun [usually singular, usually poss NOUN]
Your place is the house or flat where you live.
[informal]
14. countable noun [usually singular, usually poss NOUN]
Your place in a book or speech is the point you have reached in
reading the book or making the speech.
15. countable noun
16. verb
If you place something somewhere, you put it in a particular position,
especially in a
careful,
firm, or
deliberate way.
Brand folded it in his handkerchief and placed it in the inside pocket of his jacket.
[VERB noun preposition/adverb]
17. verb
To place a person or thing in a particular state means to cause them to be in it.
18. verb
19. verb
20. verb [usually passive]
If a competitor is placed first, second, or last, for example, that is their position at the end of a race
or competition. In American English, be placed often means 'finish in second position'.
21. verb
22. verb
If you place an advertisement in a newspaper, you arrange for the advertisement to appear in the newspaper.
[Also VERB noun] 23. verb
25. verb
If an
agency or organization places someone, it finds them a job or somewhere to live.
In cases where it proves difficult to place a child, the reception centre provides
long-term care.
[VERB noun]
26. verb
27. See also
meeting place
28.
29.
30.
31.
See
to change places
32.
33.
34.
See
go places
35.
See
in high places
36.
37.
See
in place
39.
See
in places
40.
See
in sb's place
41.
42.
43.
44.
See
out of place
45.
46.
47.
49.
51.
pride of place
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Video: pronunciation of
place
Word Frequency
place in British English
noun
1.
a particular point or part of space or of a surface, esp that occupied by a person
or thing
2.
a geographical point, such as a town, city, etc
3.
a position or rank in a sequence or order
4.
a.
an open square lined with houses of a similar type in a city or town
5.
space or room
6.
a house or living
quarters
7.
a country house with grounds
8.
any building or area set
aside for a specific purpose
9.
a passage in a book, play, film, etc
to lose one's place
11.
right or original position
put it back in its place
12.
suitable, appropriate, or
customary surroundings (esp in the phrases out of place, in place)
15.
position, condition, or state
if I were in your place
18.
any of the best times in a race
19. horse racing
b. US and Canadian
the first or usually the second position at the finish
c.
(as modifier)
a place bet
23.
another place
25.
go places
26.
in place of
27.
know one's place
28.
pride of place
30.
take one's place
32.
take place
33.
the other place
verb (mainly tr)
34.
to put or set in a particular or appropriate place
35.
to
find or indicate the place of
37.
to regard or view as being
to place prosperity above sincerity
38.
to make (an order, a
bet, etc)
39.
to find a home or job for (someone)
40.
to
appoint to an office or position
41. (often foll by with)
to put under the care (of)
42.
to direct or
aim carefully
43. (passive) British
44. (intransitive) US and Canadian
(of a racehorse, greyhound, etc) to finish among the first three in a
contest, esp in second position
47.
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
C13: via Old French from Latin platēa courtyard, from Greek plateia, from platus broad; compare French plat flat
Word Frequency
Place in British English
noun
Francis. 1771–1854, British
radical, who
campaigned for the
repeal (1824) of the Combination Acts, which
forbade the forming of trade unions, and for
parliamentary
reform
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word Frequency
place in American English
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
5.
a.
the part of space occupied by a person or thing
b.
situation or state
if I were in his place
6.
a city, town, or
village
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
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. Arithmetic
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)
verb transitiveWord forms: placed or ˈplacing
21.
a.
to put in a particular place, condition, or relation
b.
to put in an
assigned or proper place, as in a sequence or series
22.
to find employment or a position for; appoint to an office
23.
to arrange for a desired
handling, treatment, or
allocation of
to place a shipment, to place a child for adoption
24.
to assign (a value)
25.
to make or give as an
estimate
26.
to offer (a
proposal, problem, etc.) to be considered
27.
29.
to finish in (a specified position) in a competition
to place last
verb intransitive
30. Sport
to finish among the first three in a contest; specif., to finish second in a horse
or dog race
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin
OFr < L platea, a broad street (in LL, an open space) < Gr plateia, a street < platys, broad: see
platy-Examples of 'place' in a sentence
place
These examples have been automatically selected and may contain sensitive content.
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Trends of
place
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In other languages
place
British English: place
/pleɪs/ NOUN
location A place is a building, area, town, or country.
This is the place where I was born.
- American English: place
- Arabic: مَكان
- Brazilian Portuguese: lugar
- Chinese: 地方
- Croatian: mjesto
- Czech: místo
- Danish: sted
- Dutch: plaats
- European Spanish: lugar
- Finnish: paikka
- French: endroit
- German: Ort
- Greek: τόπος
- Italian: luogo
- Japanese: 場所
- Korean: 장소
- Norwegian: sted
- Polish: miejsce
- European Portuguese: lugar
- Romanian: loc
- Russian: место
- Latin American Spanish: lugar
- Swedish: plats
- Thai: สถานที่
- Turkish: yer
- Ukrainian: місце
- Vietnamese: chỗ
British English: place
/pleɪs/ VERB
If you place something somewhere, you put it in a particular position.
He folded the letter and placed it in his pocket.
- American English: place
- Arabic: يَضَع
- Brazilian Portuguese: colocar
- Chinese: 放置
- Croatian: staviti
- Czech: umístit
- Danish: placere
- Dutch: plaatsen
- European Spanish: colocar
- Finnish: asettaa
- French: placer
- German: stellen
- Greek: τοποθετώ
- Italian: collocare
- Japanese: 置く
- Korean: ...을 ...에 놓다
- Norwegian: plassere
- Polish: umieścić
- European Portuguese: colocar
- Romanian: a așeza
- Russian: класть
- Latin American Spanish: colocar
- Swedish: placera
- Thai: วางไว้ในตำแหน่ง
- Turkish: yerleştirmek
- Ukrainian: розміщувати
- Vietnamese: đặt ở đâu
British English: place /pleɪs/ NOUN
proper position A place is where something belongs.
He put the picture back in its place on the shelf.
- American English: place
- Arabic: مَكَان
- Brazilian Portuguese: local
- Chinese: 位置
- Croatian: mjesto
- Czech: místo
- Danish: plads
- Dutch: plaats
- European Spanish: lugar
- Finnish: paikka
- French: endroit
- German: Platz
- Greek: θέση
- Italian: posto
- Japanese: 場所
- Korean: 장소
- Norwegian: plass
- Polish: miejsce
- European Portuguese: lugar
- Romanian: loc
- Russian: место
- Latin American Spanish: lugarpertenencia
- Swedish: plats
- Thai: ตำแหน่ง
- Turkish: yerine
- Ukrainian: місце
- Vietnamese: nơi chốn
Nearby words of
place
Source
Definition of place from the
Collins English Dictionary
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