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Definition of plastic noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

plastic

noun
 
/ˈplæstɪk/
 
/ˈplæstɪk/
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  1. [uncountable, countable, usually plural] a light strong material that is produced by chemical processes and can be formed into shapes when heated. There are many different types of plastic, used to make different objects and fabrics.
    • The pipes should be made of plastic.
    • a sheet of clear plastic
    • the plastic industry
    • recycled plastic
    • chairs made from plastic
    • dashboards moulded in plastic
    Topics Physics and chemistrya2, The environmenta2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • heavy-duty
    • reinforced
    • strong
    verb + plastic
    • make
    • produce
    • recycle
    See full entry
  2. plastics
    [uncountable] the science of making plastics
  3. [uncountable] (informal) a way of talking about credit cards
    • Do they take plastic?
  4. Word Originmid 17th cent. (in the sense ‘characteristic of moulding’): from French plastique or Latin plasticus, from Greek plastikos, from plassein ‘to mould’.
See plastic in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee plastic in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
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