plate

Where does the word "plate" come from? It comes from Vulgar Latin plattus, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).

Plate’s story begins in Vulgar Latin: plattus meant “flat.” From Greek 'platys', broad. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as plate. Gold and silver 'plate' was tableware. It reached English by 1300s as plate. 'on your plate' meaning duties dates from the 1900s. Today, plate means a flat dish; a thin sheet of material.

1. Stage 1 · Vulgar Latin · ancient plattus "flat", from Greek 'platys', broad.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval plate "thin metal sheet", gold and silver 'plate' was tableware.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1300s plate "metal sheet; dish", 'on your plate' meaning duties dates from the 1900s.