Plastic vs Paper - What's the difference?

As nouns the difference between plastic and paper

is that plastic is a sculptor, moulder while paper is a sheet material used for writing on or printing on (or as a non-waterproof container), usually made by draining cellulose fibres from a suspension in water.

As adjectives the difference between plastic and paper

is that plastic is capable of being moulded; malleable, flexible, pliant while paper is made of paper.

As a verb paper is

to apply paper to.

plastic

English

Alternative forms

* plastick (archaic)

Noun

(en noun)

(obsolete) A sculptor, moulder.

(archaic) Any solid but malleable substance.

A synthetic, thermoplastic, solid, hydrocarbon-based polymer.

* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-07-20, volume=408, issue=8845, magazine=(The Economist)

, title= Welcome to the plastisphere , passage=Plastics' are energy-rich substances, which is why many of them burn so readily. Any organism that could unlock and use that energy would do well in the Anthropocene. Terrestrial bacteria and fungi which can manage this trick are already familiar to experts in the field. Dr Mincer and Dr Amaral-Zettler found evidence of them on their marine ' plastic , too.}}

Any similar synthetic material, not necessarily thermoplastic.

(colloquial) Credit or debit cards used in place of cash to buy goods and services.

(slang) Fakeness, or a person who is fake or arrogant, or believes that they are better than the rest of the population.

Synonyms

* See also

Derived terms

* bioplastic * plastic explosive

Adjective

(en adjective)

Capable of being moulded; malleable, flexible, pliant.

* 1749 , (Henry Fielding), , Folio Society 1973, p. 103:

the rage betook itself at last to certain missile weapons; which, though from their plastic nature they threatened neither the loss of life or of limb, were, however, sufficiently dreadful to a well-dressed lady.

* 1898 , Journal of Microscopy (page 256)

Plastic mud, brownish tinted, rich in floatings.

* 2012 , Adam Zeman, ‘Only Connect’, Literary Review , issue 399:

while the broad pattern of connections between brain regions is similar in every healthy human brain, their details – their number, size and strength – are thought to underpin our individuality, as synapses are ‘plastic ’, shaped by experience.

(dated) Creative, formative.

* Prior

the plastic hand of the Creator

* Alexander Pope

See plastic Nature working to his end.

(biology) Capable of adapting to varying conditions; characterized by environmental adaptability.

Of or pertaining to the inelastic, non-brittle, deformation of a material.

Made of plastic.

* {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham)

, title=(The China Governess) , chapter=Foreword citation , passage=A canister of flour from the kitchen had been thrown at the looking-glass and lay like trampled snow over the remains of a decent blue suit with the lining ripped out which lay on top of the ruin of a plastic wardrobe.}}

Inferior or not the real thing; ersatz.

* {{quote-book, title=The pirate's dilemma: how youth culture is reinventing capitalism

, page=, author=Matt James Mason, year=2008, passage=Frustrated by a globalized music industry force-feeding them plastic pop music, hackers, remixers, and activists began to mobilize...}}

(slang) Fake, snobbish. Usually refers to a person.

Synonyms

* malleable, flexible, pliant * ersatz * fake

Antonyms

* elastic * genuine

Derived terms

* plastic beauty * plastician * plasticity * plasticizer * plasticine * plastic surgery * thermoplastic

paper

English

(wikipedia paper)

Noun

A sheet material used for writing on or printing on (or as a non-waterproof container), usually made by draining cellulose fibres from a suspension in water.

*, chapter=10

, title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=He looked round the poor room, at the distempered walls, and the bad engravings in meretricious frames, the crinkly paper and wax flowers on the chiffonier; and he thought of a room like Father Bryan's, with panelling, with cut glass, with tulips in silver pots, such a room as he had hoped to have for his own.}}

A newspaper or anything used as such (such as a newsletter or listing magazine).

*:"I don't want to spoil any comparison you are going to make," said Jim, "but I was at Winchester and New College." ¶ "That will do," said Mackenzie. "I was dragged up at the workhouse school till I was twelve. Then I ran away and sold papers in the streets, and anything else that I could pick up a few coppers by—except steal.."

*{{quote-book, year=1935, author= George Goodchild

, title=Death on the Centre Court, chapter=1 , passage=“Anthea hasn't a notion in her head but to vamp a lot of silly mugwumps. She's set her heart on that tennis bloke

(lb) Wallpaper.

*:There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.

(lb) Wrapping paper.

A written document, generally shorter than a book (white paper'', ''term paper ), in particular one written for the Government.

A written document that reports scientific or academic research and is usually subjected to peer review before publication in a scientific journal or in the proceedings of a scientific or academic meeting (such as a conference, a workshop or a symposium).

A scholastic essay.

(lb) Money.

(lb) A university course.

A paper packet containing a quantity of items.

A medicinal preparation spread upon paper, intended for external application.

Synonyms

* (medium used in writing) bookfell

Derived terms

* abrasive paper * art paper * banana paper * blotting paper * bog paper * brown paper * butcher paper * carbon paper * chattel paper * cigarette paper * commercial paper * construction paper * * emery paper * filter paper * funny paper * graph paper * green paper * hang paper * linen paper * liquid paper * litmus paper * paper aeroplane/paper airplane * paper ballot * paper candidate * paper chase * paper chromatography * paper clip * paper currency * paper cut * paper cutter * paper fight * paper flower * paper hat * paper mill * paper money * paper nautilus * paper round * paper snowflake * paper tape * paper tiger * paper trail * paperbark * paperboard * paperknife * piece of paper * plain paper * position paper * put pen to paper * quadrille paper * rice paper * scientific paper * sheet of paper * scratch paper * soda paper * term paper * test paper * tissue paper * toilet paper * touch-paper * tracing paper * treacle paper * way out of a paper bag * white paper * wrapping paper * writing paper

Adjective

(-)

Made of paper.

*:At twilight in the summeron the floor.

Insubstantial.

Verb

(en verb)

To apply paper to.

to paper the hallway walls

To document; to memorialize.

After they reached an agreement, their staffs papered it up.

To fill a theatre or other paid event with complimentary seats.

As the event has not sold well, we'll need to paper the house.

Statistics

* 1000 English basic words ----