PLATO Definition & Meaning

Plato

[pley-toh]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

427–347 b.c., Greek philosopher.
a walled plain in the second quadrant of the face of the moon, having a dark floor: about 60 miles (96 kilometers) in diameter.

Plato

/ ˈ��ɪ��əʊ /

noun

?427–?347 _bc , Greek philosopher: with his teacher Socrates and his pupil Aristotle, he is regarded as the initiator of western philosophy. His influential theory of ideas, which makes a distinction between objects of sense perception and the universal ideas or forms of which they are an expression, is formulated in such dialogues as Phaedo, Symposium, and The Republic. Other works include The Apology and Laws

Plato

/ ˈ��ɪ��əʊ /

noun

a crater in the NW quadrant of the moon, about 100 km in diameter, that has a conspicuous dark floor

Plato

An ancient Greek philosopher, often considered the most important figure in Western philosophy. Plato was a student of Socrates and later became the teacher of Aristotle. He founded a school in Athens (see also Athens) called the Academy. Most of his writings are dialogues. He is best known for his theory that ideal Forms or Ideas, such as Truth or the Good, exist in a realm beyond the material world. In fact, however, his chief subjects are ethics and politics. His best-known dialogues are the Republic, which concerns the just state, and the Symposium, which concerns the nature of love.

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Other 51�Թ� Forms

anti-Plato adjective
pro-Plato adjective

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

He famously never wrote anything down, though his student, Plato, did.

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Randall name-checks philosophers — Hegel, Kant, Nietzsche, Plato, Marcus Aurelius — he misunderstands to his advantage and drops references to the Catiline Conspiracy and the Battle of Actium to make base actions sound important and dignified.

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In Ancient Greece, Plato thought the self, or the soul, was immortal, while Aristotle saw it as something that was connected to the body.

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“We are witnessing what Plato said over 2,000 years ago: ‘The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.’”

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Philosophers recognized drama’s power too: Although Plato critiqued theater’s emotional pull, he admitted that “the comedy of Aristophanes” had deeply influenced Socrates’ public image.

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platitudinous Platonic

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