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plain

To lament; to bewail; to complain. We with piteous heart unto you pleyne. (Chaucer)

Origin: OE. Playne, pleyne, fr. F. Plaindre. See Plaint.

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. Open; clear; unencumbered; equal; fair. Our troops beat an army in plain fight. (Felton)

3. Not intricate or difficult; evident; manifest; obvious; clear; unmistakable. 'T is a plain case.

4. Void of extraneous beauty or ornament; without conspicious embellishment; not rich; simple. Not highly cultivated; unsophisticated; free from show or pretension; simple; natural; homely; common. Plain yet pious Christians. . The plain people. .

free from affectation or disguise; candid; sincere; artless; honest; frank. An honest mind, and plain.

Not luxurious; not highly seasoned; simple; as, plain food.

Without beauty; not handsome; homely; as, a plain woman.

Not variegated, dyed, or figured; as, plain muslin.

Not much varied by modulations; as, a plain tune. Plain battle, open battle; pitched battle. Plain chant, 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. The gregorian chant, or canto fermo; the prescribed melody of the roman Catholic service, sung in unison, in tones of [[equ 786 al]] length, and rarely extending beyond the compass of an octave. A simple melody. Plain speaking, plainness or bluntness of speech.

Synonym: Level, flat, smooth, open, artless, unaffected, undisguised, frank, sincere, honest, candid, ingenuous, unembellished, downright, blunt, clear, simple, distinct, manifest, obvious, apparent. See Manifest.

Origin: F, level, flat, fr. L. Planus, perhaps akin to E. Floor. Cf. Llano, Piano, Plan, Plane level, a level surface.