plan

/plæn/

/plæn/

Other forms: plans; planned; planning

Do you have an idea of what you want and have thought carefully and in detail about how to get it? Then you have a plan, a series of actions required to achieve a particular goal.

A plan can exist only in your head, or it can be a physical object, such as an architectural plan of a building, showing how you propose to build it. As a verb, plan means the act of thinking about how to achieve your aims. You might plan to apply to colleges soon. When you plan something, you're laying the seeds for a future result, so it's not surprising that plan comes from the early English word plante, meaning "seedling."

Definitions of plan

1. noun

   a series of steps to be carried out or goals to be accomplished
   “they drew up a six-step plan”

   “they discussed plans for a new bond issue”

   synonyms: program, programme

   types:

   audit program, audit programme

   a listing of audit procedures to be performed in completing an audit

   outline, schema, scheme

   a schematic or preliminary plan

   master plan

   a long-term outline of a project or government function

   blueprint, design, pattern

   something intended as a guide for making something else

   plan of action

   a plan for actively doing something

   regime, regimen

   (medicine) a systematic plan for therapy (often including diet)

   project, projection

   a planned undertaking

   agenda, docket, schedule

   a temporally organized plan for matters to be attended to

   pension account, pension plan, retirement account, retirement plan, retirement program, retirement savings account, retirement savings plan

   a plan for setting aside money to be spent after retirement

   employee savings plan

   a plan that allows employees to contribute to an investment pool managed the employer

   guideline, road map

   a detailed plan or explanation to guide you in setting standards or determining a course of action

   stock purchase plan

   an organized plan for employees of a company to buy shares of its stock

   budget

   a summary of intended expenditures along with proposals for how to meet them

   play

   a preset plan of action in team sports

   policy

   a plan of action adopted by an individual or social group

   battle plan

   plan for conducting a battle

   system

   a procedure or process for obtaining an objective

   maneuver, manoeuvre, tactic, tactics

   a plan for attaining a particular goal

   scheme, strategy

   an elaborate and systematic plan of action

   itinerary, travel plan

   a proposed route of travel

   cash cow, money-spinner, moneymaker

   a project that generates a continuous flow of money

   fare, menu

   an agenda of things to do

   401-k, 401-k plan

   a retirement savings plan that is funded by employee contributions and (often) matching contributions from the employer; contributions are made from your salary before taxes and the funds grow tax-free until they are withdrawn, at which point they can be converted into an IRA; funds can be transferred if you change employers and you can (to some extent) manage the investments yourself

   IRA, individual retirement account

   a retirement plan that allows you to contribute a limited yearly sum toward your retirement; taxes on the interest earned in the account are deferred

   Keogh plan

   a tax-deferred pension plan for employees of unincorporated businesses or for self-employed persons

   ESOP, employee stock ownership plan

   a program under which employees regularly accumulate shares and may ultimately assume control of the company

   balanced budget

   a budget is balanced when current expenditures are equal to receipts

   initiative

   a new strategy or plan to solve a problem or improve a situation

   type of:

   idea, thought

   the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
2. verb

   have the will and intention to carry out some action
   “He plans to be in graduate school next year”

   “The rebels had planned turmoil and confusion”

   synonyms: be after

   types:

   think out

   consider carefully and rationally

   aim, aspire, draw a bead on, shoot for

   have an ambitious plan or a lofty goal

   go for, hope

   intend with some possibility of fulfilment

   overshoot

   aim too high

   type of:

   intend, mean, think

   have in mind as a purpose
3. verb

   make plans for something
   “He is planning a trip with his family”

   types:

   schedule

   plan for an activity or event

   chart

   plan in detail

   project, propose

   present for consideration, examination, criticism, etc.

   compose, draw up, frame

   make up plans or basic details for

   plot

   plan secretly, usually something illegal

   scheme

   devise a system or form a scheme for

   designate, destine, intend, specify

   design or destine

   direct, engineer, mastermind, orchestrate, organise, organize

   plan and direct (a complex undertaking)

   lay out

   provide a detailed plan or design

   schedule

   make a schedule; plan the time and place for events

   time

   assign a time for an activity or event

   book

   engage for a performance

   calendar

   enter into a calendar

   slot

   assign a time slot

   offer

   put forward for consideration

   introduce

   put before (a body)

   cabal, complot, conjure, conspire, machinate

   engage in plotting or enter into a conspiracy, swear together

   counterplot

   make a plot in response to another plot

   connive, intrigue, scheme

   form intrigues (for) in an underhand manner

   mean

   destine or designate for a certain purpose

   design

   plan something for a specific role or purpose or effect

   slate

   designate or schedule

   choreograph

   plan and oversee the development and details of

   block out

   plan where and when songs should be inserted into a theatrical production, or plan a theatrical production in general

   loft

   lay out a full-scale working drawing of the lines of a vessel's hull

   aim, calculate, direct

   specifically design a product, event, or activity for a certain public

   program, programme

   arrange a program of or for

   reschedule

   assign a new time and place for an event

   type of:

   cerebrate, cogitate, think

   use or exercise the mind or one's power of reason in order to make inferences, decisions, or arrive at a solution or judgments
4. verb

   make or work out a plan for; devise
   “plan an attack”

   synonyms: contrive, design, project

   types:

   plot

   devise the sequence of events in (a literary work or a play, movie, or ballet)

   concert

   contrive (a plan) by mutual agreement

   map, map out

   plan, delineate, or arrange in detail

   strategize

   devise a strategy, plan, or course of action

   type of:

   create by mental act, create mentally

   create mentally and abstractly rather than with one's hands
5. noun

   an arrangement scheme
   “a plan for seating guests”

   synonyms: design

   types:

   configuration, constellation

   an arrangement of parts or elements

   layout

   a plan or design of something that is laid out

   snare, trap

   something (often something deceptively attractive) that catches you unawares

   hotel plan, meal plan

   a plan and a room rate for providing a room and meals to guests at a hotel

   redundancy

   (electronics) a system design that duplicates components to provide alternatives in case one component fails

   network topology, topology

   the configuration of a communication network

   chunking, unitisation, unitization

   (psychology) the configuration of smaller units of information into large coordinated units

   iron trap

   a trap from which there is no escape

   speed trap

   a trap arranged on a roadway for catching speeders

   American plan

   a hotel plan that includes three meals daily

   Bermuda plan

   a hotel plan that provides a full breakfast daily

   European plan, continental plan

   a hotel plan that provides a continental breakfast daily

   type of:

   arrangement, organisation, organization, system

   an organized structure for arranging or classifying
6. noun

   scale drawing of a structure
   “the plans for City Hall were on file”

   synonyms: architectural plan

   types:

   elevation

   drawing of an exterior of a structure

   floor plan

   scale drawing of a horizontal section through a building at a given level; contrasts with elevation

   ground plan

   a floor plan for the ground level of a building

   type of:

   drawing

   a representation of forms or objects on a surface by means of lines
7. verb

   make a design of; plan out in systematic, often graphic form
   “plan the new wing of the museum”

   synonyms: design

   types:

   engineer

   design as an engineer

   redesign

   design anew, make a new design for

   blueprint, draft, draught

   make a blueprint of

   type of:

   create by mental act, create mentally

   create mentally and abstractly rather than with one's hands