Plane vs. Plate — What's the Difference?
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Maham Liaqat — Updated on May 6, 2024
A plane is a flat or level surface or an aircraft, while a plate is a flat dish used for serving food. Planes are associated with geometry or aviation, whereas plates are commonly used in dining or as structural components.
Difference Between Plane and Plate
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
A plane in geometry refers to a two-dimensional flat surface that extends infinitely. It is essential in mathematics for understanding shapes and angles. On the other hand, a plate is a flat, typically round dish used for serving food, reflecting its practical use in everyday life.
In aviation, a plane refers to an aircraft that flies through the air using aerodynamic lift. Whereas, in material engineering, a plate is a flat, typically metal object, used structurally to distribute loads.
When discussing woodworking, a plane is a tool used to smooth and shape wood by shaving off thin layers. Conversely, in geology, plates are large sections of Earth's lithosphere that move over the asthenosphere and are responsible for tectonic activity.
In a figurative sense, a plane represents a conceptual level or area, like a "plane of existence." A plate can metaphorically indicate a person's responsibilities or tasks, as in "having too much on one's plate."
Comparison Chart
Meaning
Flat surface or aircraft
Flat dish or structural component
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Context (geometry)
Two-dimensional surface
Not applicable
Context (aviation)
Aircraft
Not applicable
Context (engineering)
Not applicable
Flat, typically metallic object
Context (idioms)
Conceptual level or area
Responsibilities or tasks
Compare with Definitions
Plane
A flat, level surface.
The carpenter ensured the board was on a perfect plane.
Plate
A rigid, flat object for structural purposes.
The steel plate reinforced the bridge's structure.
Plane
An aircraft used for flight.
The plane took off smoothly from the runway.
Plate
A section of Earth's crust.
The Pacific Plate is one of the largest tectonic plates.
Plane
A conceptual level or field.
They operate on a different intellectual plane.
Plate
A printing surface for illustrations or text.
The engraving was printed using a metal plate.
Plane
A woodworking tool that smooths surfaces.
He used a plane to shape the wooden plank.
Plate
A flat dish for serving food.
She placed the meal on a clean plate.
Plane
A position or state of being.
Her singing operates on a higher artistic plane.
Plate
A sheet of metal.
The mechanic used a metal plate for the repair.
Plane
(Mathematics) A surface containing all the straight lines that connect any two points on it.
Plate
A smooth, flat, relatively thin, rigid body of uniform thickness.
Plane
A flat or level surface.
Plate
A sheet of hammered, rolled, or cast metal.
Plane
A level of development, existence, or achievement
Scholarship on a high plane.
Plate
A very thin applied or deposited coat of metal.
Plane
An airplane or hydroplane.
Plate
A flat piece of metal forming part of a machine
A boiler plate.
Plane
A supporting surface of an airplane; an airfoil or wing.
Plate
A flat piece of metal on which something is engraved.
Plane
A carpenter's tool with an adjustable blade for smoothing and leveling wood.
Plate
A license plate
A car with Utah plates.
Plane
A trowel-shaped tool for smoothing the surface of clay, sand, or plaster in a mold.
Plate
A thin piece of metal used for armor.
Plane
The plane tree.
Plate
Armor made of such pieces.
Plane
(Mathematics) Of or being a figure lying in a plane
A plane curve.
Plate
A sheet of metal, plastic, rubber, paperboard, or other material prepared for use as a printing surface, such as an electrotype or a stereotype.
Plane
Flat; level.
Plate
A print of a woodcut, lithograph, or other engraved material, especially when reproduced in a book.
Plane
To smooth or finish with a plane
Planed the door.
Plate
A full-page book illustration, often in color and printed on paper different from that used for text pages.
Plane
To remove with a plane
Plane off the rough edges on a board.
Plate
(Photography) A light-sensitive sheet of glass or metal on which a photographic image can be recorded.
Plane
To work with a plane.
Plate
(Dentistry) A thin metallic or plastic support fitted to the gums to anchor artificial teeth.
Plane
To rise partly out of the water, as a hydroplane does at high speeds.
Plate
(Architecture) In wood-frame construction, a horizontal member that bears a load, as of a roof or a wall.
Plane
To soar or glide.
Plate
(Baseball) Home plate.
Plane
To travel by airplane.
Plate
A shallow dish in which food is served or from which it is eaten.
Plane
Of a surface: flat or level.
Plate
The contents of such a dish
Ate a plate of spaghetti.
Plane
A level or flat surface.
Plate
A whole course served on such a dish.
Plane
(geometry) A flat surface extending infinitely in all directions (e.g. horizontal or vertical plane). Category:en:Surfaces
Plate
Service and food for one person at a meal
Dinner at a set price per plate.
Plane
(anatomy) An imaginary plane which divides the body into two portions.
Plate
Household articles, such as hollowware, covered with a precious metal, such as silver or gold.
Plane
A level of existence or development.
Astral plane
Plate
A dish passed among the members of a group or congregation for the collection of offerings.
Plane
A roughly flat, thin, often moveable structure used to create lateral force by the flow of air or water over its surface, found on aircraft, submarines, etc. (Compare airfoil, hydrofoil.)}}
Plate
A dish, cup, or other article of silver or gold offered as a prize.
Plane
Any of 17 designated ranges of 216 (65,536) sequential code points each.
Plate
A contest, especially a horserace, offering such a prize.
Plane
A tool for smoothing wood by removing thin layers from the surface.
Plate
A thin cut of beef from underneath the ribs, including the diaphragm muscle.
Plane
An airplane; an aeroplane.
Plate
A thin flat layer or scale, as that of a fish.
Plane
(entomology) Any of various nymphalid butterflies, of various genera, having a slow gliding flight.
Plate
A platelike part, organ, or structure, such as that covering some reptiles.
Plane
(entomology) The butterfly Bindahara phocides, family Lycaenidae, of Asia and Australasia.
Plate
An electrode, as in a storage battery or capacitor.
Plane
(countable) A deciduous tree of the genus Platanus.
Plate
The anode in an electron tube.
Plane
(Northern UK) A sycamore.
Plate
(Geology) See tectonic plate.
Plane
To smooth (wood) with a plane.
Plate
(Informal) A schedule of matters to be dealt with
Had a lot on my plate at work after vacation.
Plane
To move in a way that lifts the bow out of the water.
Plate
To coat or cover with a thin layer of metal.
Plane
To glide or soar.
Plate
To cover with armor plate
Plate a warship.
Plane
Any tree of the genus Platanus.
Plate
(Printing) To make a stereotype or electrotype from.
Plane
A surface, real or imaginary, in which, if any two points are taken, the straight line which joins them lies wholly in that surface; or a surface, any section of which by a like surface is a straight line; a surface without curvature.
Plate
To give a glossy finish to (paper) by pressing between metal sheets or rollers.
Plane
An ideal surface, conceived as coinciding with, or containing, some designated astronomical line, circle, or other curve; as, the plane of an orbit; the plane of the ecliptic, or of the equator.
Plate
To arrange (food) on a plate, as for serving
"a choice of starters, entrées, and desserts plated just as they will appear when ordered" (John Edward Young).
Plane
A block or plate having a perfectly flat surface, used as a standard of flatness; a surface plate.
Plate
(Baseball) To cause (a run) to be scored or (a runner) to cross home plate, as by a hit.
Plane
A tool for smoothing boards or other surfaces of wood, for forming moldings, etc. It consists of a smooth-soled stock, usually of wood, from the under side or face of which projects slightly the steel cutting edge of a chisel, called the iron, which inclines backward, with an apperture in front for the escape of shavings; as, the jack plane; the smoothing plane; the molding plane, etc.
Plate
A slightly curved but almost flat dish from which food is served or eaten.
I filled my plate from the bountiful table.
Plane
Without elevations or depressions; even; level; flat; lying in, or constituting, a plane; as, a plane surface.
Plate
(uncountable) Such dishes collectively.
Plane
To make smooth; to level; to pare off the inequalities of the surface of, as of a board or other piece of wood, by the use of a plane; as, to plane a plank.
Plate
The contents of such a dish.
I ate a plate of beans.
Plane
To efface or remove.
He planed away the names . . . written on his tables.
Plate
A course at a meal.
The meat plate was particularly tasty.
Plane
Figuratively, to make plain or smooth.
What student came but that you planed her path.
Plate
(figuratively) An agenda of tasks, problems, or responsibilities
With revenues down and transfer payments up, the legislature has a full plate.
Plane
Of a boat, to lift more or less out of the water while in motion, after the manner of a hydroplane; to hydroplane.
Plate
A flat object of uniform thickness.
The most important and most expensive part of any solar cell is a silicon plate.
Plane
An aircraft that has a fixed wing and is powered by propellers or jets;
The flight was delayed due to trouble with the airplane
Plate
A vehicle license plate.
He stole a car and changed the plates as soon as he could.
Plane
(mathematics) an unbounded two-dimensional shape;
We will refer to the plane of the graph as the X-Y plane
Any line joining two points on a plane lies wholly on that plane
Plate
A taxi permit, especially of a metal disc.
Plane
A level of existence or development;
He lived on a worldly plane
Plate
(historical) Plate armor.
He was confronted by two knights in full plate.
Plane
A power tool for smoothing or shaping wood
Plate
A layer of a material on the surface of something, usually qualified by the type of the material; plating
The bullets just bounced off the steel plate on its hull.
Plane
A carpenter's hand tool with an adjustable blade for smoothing or shaping wood;
The cabinetmaker used a plane for the finish work
Plate
A material covered with such a layer.
If you're not careful, someone will sell you silverware that's really only silver plate.
Plane
Cut or remove with or as if with a plane;
The machine shaved off fine layers from the piece of wood
Plate
(dated) An ornamental or food service item coated with silver or gold or otherwise decorated.
The tea was served in the plate.
Plane
Travel on the surface of water
Plate
(weightlifting) A weighted disk, usually of metal, with a hole in the center for use with a barbell, dumbbell, or exercise machine.
Plane
Make even or smooth, with or as with a carpenter's plane;
Plane the top of the door
Plate
(printing) An engraved surface used to transfer an image to paper.
We finished making the plates this morning.
Plane
Having a horizontal surface in which no part is higher or lower than another;
A flat desk
Acres of level farmland
A plane surface
Plate
An image or copy.
Plate
An illustration in a book, either black and white, or colour, usually on a page of paper of different quality from the text pages.
Plate
(dentistry) A shaped and fitted surface, usually ceramic or metal that fits into the mouth and in which teeth are implanted; a dental plate.
Plate
(construction) A horizontal framing member at the top or bottom of a group of vertical studs.
Plate
(Cockney rhyming slang) A foot, from "plates of meat".
Sit down and give your plates a rest.
Plate
(baseball) Home plate.
There was a close play at the plate.
Plate
(geology) A tectonic plate.
Plate
(herpetology) Any of various larger scales found in some reptiles.
Plate
A flat electrode such as can be found in an accumulator battery, or in an electrolysis tank.
Plate
The anode of a vacuum tube.
Regulating the oscillator plate voltage greatly improves the keying.
Plate
A prize given to the winner in a contest.
Plate
(chemistry) Any flat piece of material such as coated glass or plastic.
Plate
A metallic card, used to imprint tickets with an airline's logo, name, and numeric code.
Plate
The ability of a travel agent to issue tickets on behalf of a particular airline.
Plate
(Australia) A VIN plate, particularly with regard to the car's year of manufacture.
Plate
One of the thin parts of the brisket of an animal.
Plate
A very light steel horseshoe for racehorses.
Plate
(furriers' slang) Skins for fur linings of garments, sewn together and roughly shaped, but not finally cut or fitted.
Plate
(hat-making) The fine nap (as of beaver, musquash, etc.) on a hat whose body is made from inferior material.
Plate
(music) A record, usually vinyl.
Plate
(military) trauma plate.
The SAPI plate in his vest protected him from the bullet's impact.
Plate
Precious metal, especially silver.
Plate
(obsolete) Silver or gold, in the form of a coin, or less often silver or gold utensils or dishes.
Plate
(heraldic charge) A roundel of silver or argent.
Plate
To cover the surface material of an object with a thin coat of another material, usually a metal.
This ring is plated with a thin layer of gold.
Plate
To place the various elements of a meal on the diner's plate prior to serving.
After preparation, the chef will plate the dish.
Plate
(baseball) To score a run.
The single plated the runner from second base.
Plate
(transitive) To arm or defend with metal plates.
Plate
(transitive) To beat into thin plates.
Plate
To specify which airline a ticket will be issued on behalf of.
Tickets are normally plated on an itinerary's first international airline.
Plate
(philately) to categorise stamps based on their position on the original sheet, in order to reconstruct an entire sheet.
Plate
(philately) (particularly with early British stamps) to identify the printing plate used.
Plate
A flat, or nearly flat, piece of metal, the thickness of which is small in comparison with the other dimensions; a thick sheet of metal; as, a steel plate.
Plate
Metallic armor composed of broad pieces.
Mangled . . . through plate and mail.
Plate
Domestic vessels and utensils, as flagons, dishes, cups, etc., wrought in gold or silver.
Plate
Metallic ware which is plated, in distinction from that which is silver or gold throughout.
Plate
A small, shallow, and usually circular, vessel of metal or wood, or of earth glazed and baked, from which food is eaten at table.
Plate
A piece of money, usually silver money.
Plate
A piece of metal on which anything is engraved for the purpose of being printed; hence, an impression from the engraved metal; as, a book illustrated with plates; a fashion plate.
Plate
A page of stereotype, electrotype, or the like, for printing from; as, publisher's plates.
Plate
That part of an artificial set of teeth which fits to the mouth, and holds the teeth in place. It may be of gold, platinum, silver, rubber, celluloid, etc.
Plate
A horizontal timber laid upon a wall, or upon corbels projecting from a wall, and supporting the ends of other timbers; also used specifically of the roof plate which supports the ends of the roof trusses or, in simple work, the feet of the rafters.
Plate
A roundel of silver or tinctured argent.
Plate
A sheet of glass, porcelain, metal, etc., with a coating that is sensitive to light.
Plate
A prize giving to the winner in a contest.
Plate
A small five-sided area (enveloping a diamond-shaped area one foot square) beside which the batter stands and which must be touched by some part of a player on completing a run; - called also home base, or home plate.
Plate
One of the thin parts of the bricket of an animal.
Plate
A very light steel racing horsehoe.
Plate
Loosely, a sporting contest for a prize; specif., in horse racing, a race for a prize, the contestants not making a stake.
Plate
Skins for fur linings of garments, sewed together and roughly shaped, but not finally cut or fitted.
Plate
The fine nap (as of beaver, hare's wool, musquash, nutria, or English black wool) on a hat the body of which is of an inferior substance.
Plate
A quantity sufficient to fill a plate; a plateful; a dish containing that quantity; a plate of spaghetti.
Plate
The food and service supplied to a customer at a restaurant; as, the turkey dinner is $9 a plate; I'll have a plate of spaghetti.
Plate
A flat dish of glass or plastic with a fitted cover, used for culturing microorganisms in a laboratory.
Plate
The identification tag required to be displayed on the outside of a vehicle; same as license plate; - often used in the plural.
Plate
An agenda or schedule of tasks to be performed; I have a lot on my plate today.
Plate
To cover or overlay with gold, silver, or other metals, either by a mechanical process, as hammering, or by a chemical process, as electrotyping.
Plate
To cover or overlay with plates of metal; to arm with metal for defense.
Thus plated in habiliments of war.
Plate
To adorn with plated metal; as, a plated harness.
Plate
To beat into thin, flat pieces, or laminæ.
Plate
To calender; as, to plate paper.
Plate
A sheet of metal or wood or glass or plastic
Plate
(baseball) base consisting of a rubber slab where the batter stands; it must be touched by a base runner in order to score;
He ruled that the runner failed to touch home
Plate
A full-page illustration (usually on slick paper)
Plate
Dish on which food is served or from which food is eaten
Plate
The quantity contained in a plate
Plate
A rigid layer of the Earth's crust that is believed to drift slowly
Plate
The thin under portion of the forequarter
Plate
A main course served on a plate;
A vegetable plate
The blue plate special
Plate
Any flat platelike body structure or part
Plate
The positively charged electrode in a vacuum tube
Plate
A flat sheet of metal or glass on which a photographic image can be recorded
Plate
Structural member consisting of a horizontal beam that provides bearing and anchorage
Plate
A shallow receptacle for collection in church
Plate
A metal sheathing of uniform thickness (such as the shield attached to an artillery piece to protect the gunners)
Plate
A dental appliance that artificially replaces missing teeth
Plate
The position on a baseball team of the player who is stationed behind home plate and who catches the balls that the pitcher throws;
A catcher needs a lot of protective equipment
He plays behind the plate
Plate
Coat with a layer of metal;
Plate spoons with silver
Common Curiosities
What materials are plates made of?
Plates are typically made from ceramics, glass, metal, or plastic, depending on their intended use.
What are tectonic plates?
Tectonic plates are massive sections of the Earth's lithosphere that move and interact, causing earthquakes and forming landscapes.
Can a plate refer to responsibilities?
Yes, the phrase "having too much on one's plate" means having too many tasks or responsibilities.
What is a plane in geometry?
A plane is a two-dimensional, flat surface that extends infinitely.
Is a plane only used in aviation?
No, a plane also refers to flat surfaces and levels in various fields, such as geometry and carpentry.
Is a tectonic plate the same as a plate in geology?
Yes, in geology, a plate typically refers to a tectonic plate, a large section of Earth's lithosphere responsible for tectonic activities.
Can plates be used for both food and construction?
Yes, plates serve multiple purposes, from dining to structural reinforcement, depending on their material and design.
Can a plane refer to a concept or idea?
Yes, a plane can represent a conceptual level or idea, such as "existing on a higher plane," indicating a different intellectual or emotional level.
What is the purpose of a woodworking plane?
A woodworking plane is used to smooth or shape wood by shaving off thin layers, helping create an even and polished surface.
How is a plate used in construction?
In construction, a plate refers to a flat, usually metallic structure that reinforces or supports other components, distributing loads evenly.
What is a printing plate used for?
A printing plate is a flat surface with a design or text that is inked and used to print images onto paper or other materials.
Are planes and levels the same in construction?
In construction, a plane is a flat surface, whereas a level is a tool used to measure whether that surface is even.
How do plane tools differ from other woodworking tools?
Planes specifically shave off thin layers of wood, differing from saws or chisels that cut or carve wood directly.
Why are planes important in mathematics?
Planes are fundamental in mathematics because they form the basis for understanding two-dimensional shapes, angles, and geometric principles.
Why are some plates decorative?
Decorative plates often feature intricate designs and are used for display rather than dining, adding aesthetic value to a space.
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Written by
Maham Liaqat
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
