plug

Definition

A pronged connecting device which fits into a mating socket, especially an electrical one.

Etymology

From Dutch plug, from Middle Dutch plugge (“peg, plug”), from Old Dutch *pluggi, from Proto-West Germanic *plugi. Further origin unknown. Possibly from Proto-Germanic *plugjaz, but the word seems originally restricted to northern continental West Germanic. Perhaps ultimately from the same source as Dutch plag (“cut-out sod”), itself considered to be from a substrate. Compare German Low German Plüg, Norwegian plug (“peg, wedge”, probably borrowed from Middle Low German), German Pflock (“peg”, restricted to Central German and phonetically divergent). Possibly akin to Lithuanian plúkti (“to strike, hew”).

Example Sentences

• "I pushed the plug back into the electrical socket and the lamp began to glow again."
• "Pull the plug out of the tub so it can drain."
• "He preferred a plug of tobacco to loose chaw."

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