Plating

How to spell plating

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce plating

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does plating mean?

1. nounA thin layer of metal applied over the surface of an object, or the process of applying it.
2. nounA covering of metal plates fixed to a structure, vehicle, or vessel for protection or strength.
3. nounThe arrangement and presentation of food on a plate before it is served.

Plating in a sentence

• The gold plating on the cheap ring wore away within a month.

• The armoured vehicle was reinforced with heavy steel plating along its sides.

• The chef spent years perfecting his plating so each dish looked elegant.

• The factory uses electrical plating to coat the steel parts in chrome.

• Engineers inspected the hull plating for cracks after the collision.

• Careful plating turns a simple meal into something restaurants can charge for.

Where does plating come from?

Language of origin: Greek

This word is built on the noun 'plate', which came into English in the 1200s through Old French 'plate', a noun use of the adjective 'plat' meaning 'flat'. That Old French word descended from Vulgar Latin 'plattus', itself borrowed from the Greek 'platys', meaning 'broad' or 'flat', the same root that gives us 'plateau' and 'platform'. A 'plate' first meant a flat sheet of metal, and only later the flat dish we eat from. When the verb 'to plate' developed, meaning to cover a surface with a thin flat layer of metal such as gold or silver, the form 'plating' followed as the name for that process and for the coating itself. The spelling drops the silent 'e' of 'plate' before the '-ing' ending, which is the small trap writers occasionally trip on.

How the word is built

• plate (flat sheet, from Greek platys 'broad, flat')
• -ing (noun of action or result)