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plan

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun plan contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of plan are design, plot, project, and scheme. While all these words mean "a method devised for making or doing something or achieving an end," plan always implies mental formulation and sometimes graphic representation.

plans for a house

When is design a more appropriate choice than plan?

While in some cases nearly identical to plan, design often suggests a particular pattern and some degree of achieved order or harmony.

a design for a new dress

When could plot be used to replace plan?

While the synonyms plot and plan are close in meaning, plot implies a laying out in clearly distinguished sections with attention to their relations and proportions.

the plot of the play

When is it sensible to use project instead of plan?

In some situations, the words project and plan are roughly equivalent. However, project often stresses imaginative scope and vision.

a project to develop the waterfront

Where would scheme be a reasonable alternative to plan?

The synonyms scheme and plan are sometimes interchangeable, but scheme stresses calculation of the end in view and may apply to a plan motivated by craftiness and self-interest.

a scheme to defraud the government

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of plan
Noun
First, showrunner Jac Schaeffer did not flat-out deny a season 2 was coming in recent interviews, despite that apparently being the original plan. Paul Tassi, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024 Having studied the chaotic aftermath of the 2020 election, both were now eying plans to disrupt each of the procedural steps between Election Day and the Inauguration, such as the December 11th deadline for each state to ascertain a winner, and the December 17th meeting of each state’s electors. The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
The agency plans to monitor one city in St. Louis and eight counties in Texas. Ella Lee, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2024 Kagoshima and Lee will overlap at the foundation through November, Lee plans to focus on developing more events at Hakone to represent Japanese and Japanese-American culture. Isha Trivedi, The Mercury News, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for plan 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plan
Noun
  • Fall prevention strategies and balance training are crucial and can help reduce the risk of fractures.
    Jianying Zhang, Discover Magazine, 8 Nov. 2024
  • Avoiding boredom of sitting in the same spot day after day. Cons of Mobile Hunting the Rut As with all hunting strategies, mobile hunting during the rut does have some drawbacks as well.
    Josh Honeycutt, Outdoor Life, 7 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • Thinness and ultra-portability have never been primary goals for the larger MacBook Pro, instead showcasing how much power Apple can cram into a mobile computer.
    PCMAG, PCMAG, 7 Nov. 2024
  • Related:Why party members are focused on flipping these seats on Louisville's Metro Council District 18: Marilyn Parker likely beats Mera Corlett Incumbent Marilyn Parker, a Republican, seems to have kept her seat despite the Jefferson County Democratic Party's goal of flipping it blue.
    Eleanor McCrary, The Courier-Journal, 6 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • But a fight in the Pacific is not the only scenario the United States must be prepared for (and, ideally, deter), and readiness in other arenas will require addressing other deficiencies.
    Kori Schake, Foreign Affairs, 8 Nov. 2024
  • In a nighttime video, a group of men is seen blocking traffic on a highway and slicking the roadway to prepare for the race.
    Antonio Planas, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Her kids are also receiving a more significant portion of the estate than was intended.
    R. Eric Thomas, The Denver Post, 16 Nov. 2024
  • Given the laptop-class CPU and GPU, only the RAM and storage are intended to be readily user-accessible—the chips are locked down and facing toward the cooling system that occupies the other half of the case.
    PCMAG, PCMAG, 16 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • Trump has disavowed the 900-page blueprint for reorganizing swaths of politics and society along hard-right lines, despite some of his former aides’ involvement in writing it.
    Alexander Smith, NBC News, 8 Nov. 2024
  • Read More: America's Border Wall Is Bipartisan Over the next decades, other states used Prop 187 as a blueprint, recognizing that even if the laws were struck down, the process of galvanizing support for anti-immigrant measures could be politically useful.
    Eladio B. Bobadilla / Made by History, TIME, 5 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • These extensions have been funded primarily by loans from Water On Demand, Inc. Fortune Rise Acquisition Corporation is a blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger or similar business combination.
    Quartz Bot, Quartz, 14 Nov. 2024
  • Brendan’s devotion to his men is inextricable from his purpose in the army, but the lofty Gerry sees it as a weakness.
    Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Plans and Prices Dropbox has four business tiers, each designed for a different productivity type.
    Robert Anderson, PCMAG, 12 Nov. 2024
  • None of them are specifically designed for skiing, winter biking, or any other high-output activity.
    Abigail Barronian, Outside Online, 11 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Their agreement contemplated alternative dispute mechanisms, including arbitration, to resolve any contractual conflict.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 4 Nov. 2024
  • The alternative is a future too abhorrent for even the most dystopian imaginations at WIRED to contemplate.
    Katie Drummond, WIRED, 4 Nov. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near plan

Cite this Entry

“Plan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plan. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on plan

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