What is "plank"

Plank \Plank\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Planked; p. pr. & vb. n. Planking.]

1. To cover or lay with planks; as, to plank a floor or a ship. ``Planked with pine.''
   --Dryden.

2. To lay down, as on a plank or table; to stake or pay cash; as, to plank money in a wager. [Colloq. U.S.]

3. To harden, as hat bodies, by felting.

4. (Wooden Manuf.) To splice together the ends of slivers of wool, for subsequent drawing.

   Planked shad, shad split open, fastened to a plank, and roasted before a wood fire.

Plank \Plank\, n. [OE. planke, OF. planque, planche, F. planche, fr. L. planca; cf. Gr. ?, ?, anything flat and broad. Cf. Planch.]

1. A broad piece of sawed timber, differing from a board only in being thicker. See Board.

2. Fig.: That which supports or upholds, as a board does a swimmer.

   His charity is a better plank than the faith of an intolerant and bitter-minded bigot.
   --Southey.

3. One of the separate articles in a declaration of the principles of a party or cause; as, a plank in the national platform. [Cant]

   Plank road, or Plank way, a road surface formed of planks. [U.S.]

   To walk the plank, to walk along a plank laid across the bulwark of a ship, until one overbalances it and falls into the sea; -- a method of disposing of captives practiced by pirates.

late 13c. (c.1200 as a surname), from Old North French planke, variant of Old French planche "plank, slab, little wooden bridge" (12c.), from Late Latin planca "broad slab, board," probably from Latin plancus "flat, flat-footed," from PIE *plak- (1) "to be flat" (see placenta). Technically, timber sawed to measure 2 to 6 inches thick, 9 inches or more wide, and 8 feet or more long. Political sense of "item of a party platform" is U.S. coinage from 1848. To walk the plank, supposedly a pirate punishment, is first attested 1789 and most early references are to slave-traders disposing of excess human cargo in crossing the ocean.

n. 1 A long, broad and thick piece of timber, as opposed to a board which is less thick. 2 A political issue that is of concern to a faction or a party of the people and the political position that is taken on that issue. 3 Physical exercise in which one holds a pushup position for a measured length of time. 4 (context British slang English) A stupid person, idiot. 5 That which supports or upholds. vb. 1 (context transitive English) To cover something with planking. 2 (context transitive English) To bake (fish, etc.) on a piece of cedar lumber. 3 (context transitive colloquial English) To lay down, as on a plank or table; to stake or pay cash. 4 (context transitive English) To harden, as hat body, by felting. 5 To splice together the ends of slivers of wool, for subsequent drawing. 6 (context intransitive English) To pose for a photograph while lying rigid, face down, arms at side, in an unusual place.

1. n. a stout length of sawn timber; made in a wide variety of sizes and used for many purposes [syn: board]

2. an endorsed policy in the platform of a political party

1. v. cover with planks; "The streets were planked" [syn: plank over]

2. set (something or oneself) down with or as if with a noise; "He planked the money on the table"; "He planked himself into the sofa" [syn: flump, plonk, plop, plunk, plump down, plunk down, plump]

3. cook and serve on a plank; "Planked vegetable"; "Planked shad"

Plank may refer to:

• Plank (wood)
• Plank (exercise), an isometric exercise for the abdominal muscles
• Plank, Kentucky
• The Plank (1967 film), a British comedy film with no dialogue
• The Plank (1979 film), a remake of the 1967 film
• Plank, an item of a party platform in United States politics
• Plank, a character in Ed, Edd n Eddy
• Plank or Peter Clements, guitar tech for Radiohead

A plank is timber that is flat, elongated, and rectangular with parallel faces that are higher and longer than wide. Used primarily in carpentry, planks are critical in the construction of ships, houses, bridges, and many other structures. Planks also serve as supports to form shelves and tables.

Usually made from sawed timber, planks are usually more than thick, and are generally wider than . In the United States, planks can be any length and are generally a minimum of deep by wide, but planks that are by and by are more commonly stocked by lumber retailers. Planks are often used as a work surface on elevated scaffolding, and need to be wide enough to provide strength without breaking when walked on. The wood is categorized as a board if its width is less than , and its thickness is less than .

A plank used in a building as a horizontal supporting member that runs between foundations, walls, or beams to support a ceiling or floor is called a joist.

The plank was the basis of maritime transport: wood floats on water, and abundant forests meant wooden logs could be easily obtained and processed, making planks the primary material in ship building. However, since the 20th century, wood has largely been supplanted in ship construction by iron and steel, to decrease cost and improve durability.

The plank (also called a front hold, hover, or abdominal bridge) is an isometric core strength exercise that involves maintaining a position similar to a push-up for the maximum possible time.