plussed
plussed is the simple past and past participle of plus.
Adjective (2)
plussed (not comparable)
- Calm, collected and unconfused; not nonplussed (“bewildered, unsure how to react”).
- Jady was rarely nonplussed, normally being very plussed indeed, but Alison's ability to move events without really noticing astounded him. She ran her hair idly through her fingers.2000, Barry Tighe, Identity Cards, Barry Tighe, →ISBN
- Edgar was a bit not plussed when they asked him about it. Such a problem had never occurred before, he was sure of that, and it would probably have to be […]2003, Joy Drinkwater, Kim M. Guzzo, Endings & Beginnings, iUniverse, →ISBN, page 219
- Bothered, fazed, vexed, or concerned; not nonplussed (“unfazed, unaffected, unimpressed”).
- I have received so much contradictory advice that I am quite plussed [sic] but I am inclined to think that that given to me by Mr. the American Ambassador […]1970, Laurence Marton Lerner, The Rise of the Impresario: Bernard Ullman and the Transformation of Musical Culture in Nineteenth Century America
- […] in time for final boarding call, only slightly non-plussed. Actually, I was quite plussed. It's a scary thought to think what might have happened had we missed our plane, the first of 3 connecting flights.2009, Valerie Welbourn, Just Say No to Manchanilla Apples!: A Family Travelogue, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 53
Meaning of plus
Verb
plus (third-person singular simple present pluss or plusses, present participle plusing or plussing, simple past and past participle plused or plussed)
- To add; to subject to addition.
- For him y is a unique number, like 7, but for the time being unknown — if one does the operation of 'plussing 4' one still has, as a result, a unique number even though one does not yet know what it is.1973, Australian Council for Educational Research, ACER research series - Issues 93-95, page 39
- To increase in magnitude.
- I am doing a lot of writing here, plussing the script, adding sequences.2006, Danny Fingeroth, Mike Manley, How to Create Comics: From Script to Print, →ISBN, page 48
- To improve.
- Coach Wooden didn't have to depend upon having the most talented players on his team because he could depend upon plussing to constantly make everyone better.1998, Nate Booth, Strategies for Fast-Changing Times, →ISBN, page 91
- To provide critical feedback by giving suggestions for improvement rather than criticisms.
- The animators and directors on the receiving end of the plussing don't necessarily have to accept and incorporate the feedback, but plussing provides a method to share criticisms in a way that makes it more likely that they will.2013, David Burkus, The Myths of Creativity, →ISBN
- To sell additional related items with an original purchase.
- Good will is also secured by plussing the original purchase with another article that goes appropriately with it.1920, The Current Business Cyclopedia: Business Digest
- To frame in a positive light; to provide a sympathetic interpretation.
- Plussing is a technique for enhancing a positive atmosphere in the session, for diminishing hostility, and for raising self-esteem.1979, Douglas A. Puryear, Helping People in Crisis, page 87
Adjective (1)
plussed (not comparable)
- Containing a plus sign.
- I think the only good form of email address munging is a plussed email address as I have in this message. While I am not automatically bitbucketing email addressed in this way, it does keep it from hitting my inbox and demanding my immediate attention.1997, Matthew N. Dodd, “anti-spam e-mail addresses”, in comp.os.vms (Usenet)
Origin of plussed
See plus.
A back-formation from nonplussed; see that entry for more on its own sense development.
Questions about plussed
- What does plussed mean?
- Plussed means containing a plus sign.
- What is plussed the simple past and past participle of?
- Plussed is the simple past and past participle of plus.
- What part of speech is plussed?
- Plussed is an adjective.
Words near plussed in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: plussed (page history and authors); plus (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Cite this entry: “plussed.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/plussed. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
