Save Type Surname (from nickname & from location) Usage English Pronounced Pron. PLAT [key·IPA] Meaning & History From Old French plat meaning "flat, thin", from Late Latin plattus, from Greek πλατύς (platys) meaning "wide, broad, flat". This may have been a nickname or a topographic name for someone who lived near a flat feature. Categories landforms, nicknames, sizes, voice actors