means A synthetic, moldable material made from polymers that can be shaped into nearly anything and then, unfortunately, lasts nearly forever.

from From Greek 'plastikos,' meaning 'able to be molded or shaped,' from 'plassein,' 'to mold.' For centuries 'plastic' was just an adjective for anything pliable — sculptors worked in plastic clay, and the word kept that sense well into the modern era. Only in the early 20th century, when chemists began cooking up moldable synthetic compounds, did the adjective harden into a noun for the stuff itself.