plate up
B1 informal separable both
In simple words
To put food onto a plate ready to be served and eaten.
Literal meaning: To put food up onto a plate — largely transparent.
Meanings
1 B1 informal
To put food onto plates ready to be served, often with attention to presentation.
"Right, the sauce is ready — now let's plate up and get these dishes out to the customers."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Very common in cooking shows, restaurants, and home cooking contexts. Made popular by TV cooking programmes. 'Plate up' implies care about presentation and often a final step before serving. Used as a transitive ('plate up the fish') or intransitive ('are you ready to plate up?') verb. Universally understood in British and American English.
Commonly used with
food dinner dish starter dessert meal
Forms
Base
plate up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
plates up
he/she/it
Past simple
plated up
yesterday
Past participle
plated up
have + pp
-ing form
plating up
continuous
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Synonyms
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