26984 words

ply

12 definitions • 19 examples
1
to sell or to work regularly at something, especially at a job that involves selling things:

Examples:

Fishermen in small boats ply their trade up and down the coast.
The market traders were loudly plying their wares.
2
to try to get customers for your business in a public place, for example, as a taxi driver, by driving around or waiting in a regular place:

Examples:

There are never any taxis plying for trade/hire in our area.
3
When a boat, train, bus, etc. plies a particular route, it makes that journey regularly:

Examples:

High-speed trains regularly ply between Paris and Lyons.
This airline has been plying the transatlantic route for many years.
4
the particular number of threads from which wool, rope, etc. is made, used as a measure of its thickness:

Examples:

six balls of four-ply (wool)
What ply do you need for that knitting pattern?
5
the particular number of layers from which plywood or tissue is formed, used as a measure of its thickness:

Examples:

Will three-ply (= woolmade from three layers stuck together) be strong enough for making a shelf?
6
a layer of something such as wood or paper, or a thread that is wrapped with other threads to form yarn (= wool cord) or rope:

Examples:

two-ply facial tissue
7
to work at something regularly:

Examples:

New buses plied the city's bus routes this week.
Extreme-sports athletes ply their craft (= their skill or job) in especially difficult conditions.
8
to travel over distances regularly by boat or other form of transport:

Examples:

[ T ] Large numbers of vessels plied the waters between New York and Cape Hatteras.
9
to sell something:

Examples:

ply (your) wares Companies should be accountable for the wares that they ply.
10
to make a journey regularly:

Examples:

There are fears about the safety of some of the ageing vessels that ply Aegean waters.
ply between sth At present, big cargo ships plying between the east and west coasts of India have to circumnavigate Sri Lanka.
The airline recently founded a new operator to ply long-haul routes to China and Britain starting in July.
11
to try to get customers for your business in a public place, for example, as a taxi driver, by driving around or waiting in a regular place:

Examples:

London's formidable black taxis enjoy a lucrative near monopoly over plying for hire on the capital's streets.
12
to do your job:

Examples:

Having worked as a government lawyer for 15 years, he is departing for the private sector to ply his trade as a barrister at Lincoln's Inn.

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