as in simple
free from all additions or embellishment
we decided to buy the plain-vanilla model because we don't have a lot of money to spend on extras
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Recent Examples of plain-vanilla
That means less plant capacity to make plain-vanilla DRAM for basic electronics like phones.
—
Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 16 Feb. 2026
That means less plant capacity to make plain-vanilla DRAM for basic electronics like phones.
—Debby Wu, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2026
Even the most basic plain-vanilla checking account carries an underlying cost for transaction processing and maintenance, estimated between $200 and $400 annually.
—Peter Su, Rolling Stone, 20 Oct. 2025
By blending plain-vanilla money funds with blockchain rails, the firm is proving that tokenization is not just a theory but a functioning business model.
—Christer Holloman, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Your dingy, plain-vanilla concrete drive can be transformed to a stunning art piece by installing a thin cement stucco coating.
—Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 2 Aug. 2025
As a FactSet researcher told The Wall Street Journal, a more efficient, though less satisfying, way to virtue-signal would be to buy a plain-vanilla index fund and donate the investment gains to a political cause.
—semafor.com, 8 July 2025
Replacing the plain-vanilla look of the previous iteration, Alfa G’s black hull with a signature red stripe and white superstructure complete this remarkable conversion.
—Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 10 June 2025
While the Federal Reserve began dialing back interest rates last fall, investors spent much of 2024 enjoying attractive yields on a range of plain-vanilla savings products.
—Darla Mercado, Cfp®, CNBC, 28 Jan. 2025
Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 16 Feb. 2026
That means less plant capacity to make plain-vanilla DRAM for basic electronics like phones.
—Debby Wu, Fortune, 15 Feb. 2026
Even the most basic plain-vanilla checking account carries an underlying cost for transaction processing and maintenance, estimated between $200 and $400 annually.
—Peter Su, Rolling Stone, 20 Oct. 2025
By blending plain-vanilla money funds with blockchain rails, the firm is proving that tokenization is not just a theory but a functioning business model.
—Christer Holloman, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Your dingy, plain-vanilla concrete drive can be transformed to a stunning art piece by installing a thin cement stucco coating.
—Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 2 Aug. 2025
As a FactSet researcher told The Wall Street Journal, a more efficient, though less satisfying, way to virtue-signal would be to buy a plain-vanilla index fund and donate the investment gains to a political cause.
—semafor.com, 8 July 2025
Replacing the plain-vanilla look of the previous iteration, Alfa G’s black hull with a signature red stripe and white superstructure complete this remarkable conversion.
—Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 10 June 2025
While the Federal Reserve began dialing back interest rates last fall, investors spent much of 2024 enjoying attractive yields on a range of plain-vanilla savings products.
—Darla Mercado, Cfp®, CNBC, 28 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plain-vanilla
Adjective
-
July 23 – August 22 Clarity today comes from keeping your message simple and grounded.—
Tarot.com,
Sun Sentinel,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Brown said Atlanta was taking away the Knicks’ spray game, which made the answer simpler.—
C.J. Holmes,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Revisiting maps mid-decade for political advantage runs directly against both the spirit and the plain language of those protections.—
Dan Daley,
The Orlando Sentinel,
28 Apr. 2026
-
But a glimpse at an earlier journalistic universe—newspapers in the era before social media—shows the dishonesty at the center of the project to treat the plain meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment as up for grabs.—
Lawrence Glickman,
The Atlantic,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plain-vanilla.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plain-vanilla. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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