plug-in

/ˈplʌɡ.ɪn/

adjective

Designed to be plugged into an electrical power outlet or circuit.

“a plug-in hand drill”

Opposite

Meanings

adjectiveplug-in (not comparable)

alternative plugin

  1. not comparableDesigned to be plugged into an electrical power outlet or circuit.

    a plug-in hand drill

  2. not comparableAble to be extended with further components in a modular fashion.
nounplug-in (plural plug-ins)

plural plug-ins · alternative plugin

  1. Anything that plugs into something.
  2. computingA module or device that interacts with another to add a specific feature or function.
  3. An electric vehicle that can be recharged from an external power source.

    Synonyms: PEV

  4. An air freshener that can be charged by connecting it to the mains power supply.

    Plus, I expect a Febreze plug-in would smell like heaven to me right now.

    2017, Poppy Dolan, The Bluebell Bunting Society
    3 more examples

    They take your best bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and boil it up with Satsuma peel and bits of stick, resulting in a hot sour wine and every room of the house smelling like a festive Airwick Plug-in has exploded, with the added bonus that all your best pans are now ruined. Cheers!

    2013, Rob Temple, Very British Problems: Making Life Awkward for Ourselves One Rainy Day at a Time, page 141

    But unlike other Glade products with the aroma being released simply by spraying it or by opening the container, this new product the "Glade Plug-In" required that the product actually be plugged into an electrical socket in order for the aroma and fragrance to get released into the air, with the slogan for its product being "Plug it in, plug it in".

    2015, Sheldon Malone, Changing the Way You Think: One-Year Devotional Unlocking the Mind with the Word of God

    I quickly picked up the dirty laundry that was scattered all around, opened the window, sprayed the room down with Febreze, changed the plug-in, and called it good.

    2021, Lori A. Bonnevier,MSW,LCSW, You Don't Have to Crush Your Ex: Hints, Hacks, and Hell-No's to Win Your Custody Evaluation

Synonyms & antonyms

nounAn electric vehicle that can be recharged from an external power source.

Similar

antonym(s) of “designed to be plugged in”

Opposite
Broader
software component

More synonyms by meaning

nouna software module that extends or enhances the capabilities of an existing application

Similar
Broader
softwaresoftware programcomputer software

nouna printed circuit that can be inserted into expansion slots in a computer to increase the computer's capabilities

Similar

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

Translations

Arabic مُلْحَق
  • مُلْحَق (mulḥaq)computer add-on
Basque plugin
  • plugincomputer add-on
Catalan connector, plugin
  • connectorcomputer add-on
  • plugincomputer add-on
Chinese Mandarin 插件
  • 插件 (chājiàn)computer add-on
Czech zásuvný modul
  • zásuvný modulcomputer add-on
Dutch plug-in
  • plug-incomputer add-on
Esperanto kromprogramo
  • kromprogramocomputer add-on
Finnish liitännäinen
  • liitännäinencomputer add-on
French greffon, plugiciel
  • greffoncomputer add-on
  • plugicielcomputer add-on
  • module d’extensioncomputer add-on
  • plugincomputer add-on
German Plug-in, Plugin
  • Plug-incomputer add-on
  • Plugincomputer add-on
Hebrew מתקע
  • מתקע (mitká)computer add-on
Icelandic tengiforrit
  • tengiforritcomputer add-on
Japanese プラグイン
  • プラグイン (puraguin)computer add-on
Korean 플러그인
  • 플러그인 (peulleogeu'in)computer add-on
Malay pemalam
  • pemalamcomputer add-on
Norwegian Bokmål programvareutvidelse
  • programvareutvidelsecomputer add-on
Persian افزایه
  • افزایه (afzâye)computer add-on
Polish plugin, wtyczka
  • plugincomputer add-on
  • wtyczkacomputer add-on
Portuguese plugin, extensão
  • plugincomputer add-on
  • extensãocomputer add-on
  • complementocomputer add-on
  • extracomputer add-on
  • módulo de extensãocomputer add-on
  • módulocomputer add-on
  • módulo externocomputer add-on
Russian плаги́н, дополни́тельный програ́ммный мо́дуль
  • плаги́н (plagín)computer add-on
  • дополни́тельный програ́ммный мо́дуль (dopolnítelʹnyj prográmmnyj módulʹ)computer add-on
Spanish extensión
  • extensióncomputer add-on
Swedish insticksmodul, tilläggsmodul
  • insticksmodulcomputer add-on
  • tilläggsmodulcomputer add-on
  • insticksprogramcomputer add-on
  • tilläggsprogramcomputer add-on
Thai ปลั๊กอิน
  • ปลั๊กอิน (bplák-in)computer add-on
Vietnamese trình cắm, phần bổ trợ
  • trình cắmcomputer add-on
  • phần bổ trợcomputer add-on
  • phần bổ sungcomputer add-on
Cite this entry
APA

plug-in. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/plug-in

MLA

“plug-in.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/plug-in. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “plug-in,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/plug-in.

Source: plug-in on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.