spin the plate

9.3

A children's game where a plate is spun and the named player must catch it or do a silly task

noun

Baby Talk

: gira el plato

If you fail to catch the plate in spin the plate, you have to do a silly forfeit.

Examples

We used to spend hours playing spin the plate during our school breaks.
At the party, the children decided to play spin the plate in the garden.
Let's play spin the plate!
Have you ever played spin the plate?
At the birthday party, the kids laughed and played spin the plate as they tried to catch it before it stopped.
To make the game more fun, they decided that any player who misses the plate in spin the plate has to wear a funny hat.
During recess, the children gathered to play spin the plate, each taking turns to catch the spinning object.

Synonyms

spin the platter

vsspin the plate

Baby Talk

9.7

A children's game in which players turn a plate on its edge and try to catch it before it falls

has identical meaning but uses a different noun form

Surface Forms

spin the plate singular

spin the plates plural

Morphology

spin + the + plate

The phrase is largely compositional: a learner who knows 'spin' and 'plate' can infer an activity involving spinning a plate, so the general idea of a game or action is transparent. However, the specific conventionalized rules and game sense (calling names, catching before it stops, paying a forfeit) are not derivable from the constituent words alone, so the expression is only partially predictable.

Etymology

Spin the plate is a children's game where a player makes a plate stand on its edge and spin it while names are called; the named player must 'catch' the plate before it stops or do a 'forfeit'. That's why the phrase refers to a game where a spinning plate decides who must act or be punished.