plum Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun any of several trees producing edible oval fruit having a smooth skin and a single hard stone
    plum tree.
  2. noun any of numerous varieties of small to medium-sized round or oval fruit having a smooth skin and a single pit
  3. noun a highly desirable position or assignment
    • a political plum
  4. adverb exactly
    plumb.
    • fell plumb in the middle of the puddle
  5. adverb completely; used as intensifiers
    plumb; clean.
    • clean forgot the appointment
    • I'm plumb (or plum) tuckered out

WordNet

Plum noun
Etymology
AS.pl&umac;me, fr. L. prunum; akin to Gr. , . Cf. Prune a dried plum.
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) The edible drupaceous fruit of the Prunus domestica, and of several other species of Prunus; also, the tree itself, usually called plum tree.
    The bullace, the damson, and the numerous varieties of plum, of our gardens, although growing into thornless trees, are believed to be varieties of the blackthorn, produced by long cultivation. G. Bentham.
    ✍ Two or three hundred varieties of plums derived from the Prunus domestica are described; among them the greengage, the Orleans, the purple gage, or Reine Claude Violette, and the German prune, are some of the best known. ✍ Among the true plums are; Beach plum, the Prunus maritima, and its crimson or purple globular drupes, -- Bullace plum. See Bullace. -- Chickasaw plum, the American Prunus Chicasa, and its round red drupes. -- Orleans plum, a dark reddish purple plum of medium size, much grown in England for sale in the markets. -- Wild plum of America, Prunus Americana, with red or yellow fruit, the original of the Iowa plum and several other varieties. Among plants called plum, but of other genera than Prunus, are; Australian plum, Cargillia arborea and C. australis, of the same family with the persimmon. -- Blood plum, the West African Hæmatostaphes Barteri. -- Cocoa plum, the Spanish nectarine. See under Nectarine. -- Date plum. See under Date. -- Gingerbread plum, the West African Parinarium macrophyllum. -- Gopher plum, the Ogeechee lime. -- Gray plum, Guinea plum. See under Guinea. -- Indian plum, several species of Flacourtia.
  2. A grape dried in the sun; a raisin.
  3. A handsome fortune or property; formerly, in cant language, the sum of £100,000 sterling; also, the person possessing it.
Plum adjective
Etymology
OE. plomp rude, clumsy; akin to D. plomp, G., Dan., & Sw. plump; probably of imitative origin. Cf. Plump, adv.
Wordforms
comparative Plumper ; superlative Plumpest
Definitions
  1. Well rounded or filled out; full; fleshy; fat; as, a plump baby; plump cheeks. Shak.
    The god of wine did his plump clusters bring. T. Carew.
Plum noun
Definitions
  1. A knot; a cluster; a group; a crowd; a flock; as, a plump of trees, fowls, or spears. Obs.
    To visit islands and the plumps of men. Chapman.

Webster 1913