Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. any form of credit card; thus (US) work plastic v., to obtain goods using a stolen credit card.

1974		D. Jenkins Dead Solid Perfect 209: I told her there was plenty of money in the checking account, and of course she had a whole purse full of plastic.
1985		N. Pileggi Wiseguy (2001) 179: He thought Stacks got whacked in some drug deal or over some plastic.
1993		K. Lette Foetal Attraction (1994) 242: The only plastic you’ve got left is your organ donor card.
1998		I. Welsh Filth 256: Tidy fanny wi real brains always take the short-cut by marrying wedge and getting sorted out with some plastic.
1999		P. Temple Black Tide (2012) [ebook] Might not be on his plastic. Might have paid cash.
2000		Guardian 21 Jan. 32: How is we footballers going to keep up our rep as the biggest of spenders if he can swan around unhindered melting the plastic?
2003		McGill Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl. 159: plastic fantastic [...] 2. Credit cards. At Christmas a lot of us thrash the plastic.
2013		K. Sampson Killing Pool 141: I slot the plastic, bang in the PIN.
2020		C. Hiaasen Squeeze Me 15: ‘How much is this gonna cost?’ ‘Four hundred dollars.’ [...] ‘You take plastic?’.
2021		P Howard Braywatch 28: ‘That’ll be €52.50’ [...] I hand the woman my plastic.

2. (UK Und.) plastic explosive, used for safe-breaking.

1979		J. Morrow Confessions of Proinsias O’Toole 133: Have you any plastic handy? – Enough for a small safe.
1989		(con. 1950s–60s) in G. Tremlett Little Legs 114: All you have to do is pop the plastic in a keyhole and use a detonator.
1991		J. Osborne Déjàvu Act I: When I hear ‘money for the arts’, I reach for my Semtex plastic.