ply

verb

/plaɪ/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they ply	/plaɪ/ /plaɪ/
he / she / it plies	/plaɪz/ /plaɪz/
past simple plied	/plaɪd/ /plaɪd/
past participle plied	/plaɪd/ /plaɪd/
-ing form plying	/ˈplaɪɪŋ/ /ˈplaɪɪŋ/

Idioms Phrasal Verbs

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[intransitive, transitive] (literary or Indian English) (of ships, buses, etc.) to travel regularly along a particular route or between two particular places
- + adv./prep. Ferries ply across a narrow strait to the island.
- The train plies twice a day between Paris and Madrid.
- Buses ply regularly to and from these places.
- ply something canals plied by gondolas and steam boats
- ships plying the route between Tripoli and Malta
[transitive] ply something (formal) to use a tool, especially with skill
- The tailor delicately plied his needle.

Word Originverb late Middle English: shortening of apply.

Idioms

ply for hire/trade/business

(British English) to look for customers, passengers, etc. in order to do business
- taxis plying for hire outside the theatre

ply your trade

to do your work or business
- This is the restaurant where he plied his trade as a cook.
- Drug dealers openly plied their trade in front of children.

noun

/plaɪ/

[uncountable] especially in compounds

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a measurement of wool, rope, wood, etc. that tells you how thick it is
- four-ply knitting yarn
Word Originnoun late Middle English (in the sense ‘fold’): from French pli ‘fold’, from the verb plier, from Latin plicare ‘to fold’.