places

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of place.

   The guidebook lists dozens of quiet places worth visiting off the main road.

   There are still a few places left at the front of the theater.

   Note

   One spelling, two jobs: the same word is also the verb form in she places, so the surrounding grammar tells them apart. As a noun plural it covers every countable use of place, including towns and regions, city squares and streets, seats in a theater, and a person's home. A few places left at the front means seats. Quiet places worth visiting means spots on the map.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of place.

   The waiter places each dish in front of the guest who ordered it.

   Our coach places the strongest swimmer in the final leg of the relay.

   Note

   The present-tense form for he, she, it or any single subject, and it carries every sense of the verb. Most uses take an object: she places the vase, he finally places that face. In competition it can stand without one and is often followed by an ordinal, as in the runner places third. In horse and dog racing, an animal that simply places has finished second.

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