PLAIN

Definitions

1. 1. Without elevations or depressions; flat; level; smooth; even. See Plane. The crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. Isa. xl. 4.
2. 2. Open; clear; unencumbered; equal; fair. Our troops beat an army in plain fight. Felton.
3. 3. Not intricate or difficult; evident; manifest; obvious; clear; unmistakable. "'T is a plain case." Shak.
4. 4. Void of extraneous beauty or ornament; without conspicious embellishment; not rich; simple.
5. 5. Not highly cultivated; unsophisticated; free from show or pretension; simple; natural; homely; common. "Plain yet pious Christians." Hammond. "The plain people." A. Lincoln.
6. 6. Free from affectation or disguise; candid; sincere; artless; honest; frank. "An honest mind, and plain." Shak.
7. 7. Not luxurious; not highly seasoned; simple; as, plain food.
8. 8. Without beauty; not handsome; homely; as, a plain woman.
9. 9. Not variegated, dyed, or figured; as, plain muslin.
10. 10. Not much varied by modulations; as, a plain tune. Plain battle, open battle; pitched battle. [Obs.] Chaucer. -- Plain chant (Mus.) Same as Plain song, below. -- Plain chart (Naut.), a chart laid down on Mercator's projection. -- Plain dealer. (a) One who practices plain dealing. (b) A simpleton. [Obs.] Shak. -- Plain dealing. See under Dealing. -- Plain molding (Join.), molding of which the surfaces are plain figures. -- Plain sewing, sewing of seams by simple and common stitches, in distinct from fancy work, embroidery, etc.; -- distinguished also from designing and fitting garments. -- Plain song. (a) The Gregorian chant, or canto fermo; the prescribed melody of the Roman Catholic service, sung in unison, in tones of equal length, and rarely extending beyond the compass of an octave. (b) A simple melody. -- Plain speaking, plainness or bluntness of speech.