Plague, Plaque

He abstracted his life from the times. He believed he was a newspaper reporter, yet read no paper except the Mockingburg Record, and so managed to ignore terrorism, climatological change, collapsing governments, collapsing governments, chemical spills, plagues, recession and falling banks, floating debris, the disintegrating ozone layer.” –The Shipping News by Annie Proulx

Plague functions as a noun and verb and adjective (plague-ridden, plague-stricken: infected with a plague, affected with the plague).

The plague is a singular noun such as the bubonic plague.

Plague is a deadly infectious disease that kills many people.

In ‘Narratives of the Bombay Plague’ Kalpish Ratna examines the impact of plague on the city with rigourous analysis.

Plague is also used in attributive sense: At one point of time, AIDS has reached plague proportions but awareness and preventive measures has curtailed its occurrence in the human beings.

Plague refers to something that has reached large numbers such as a pest that could a place and cause damage and annoyance.

All over the world, cities and towns are constantly fighting against a plague of rats and rodents.

If you say someone or something is a plague, it means it is a nuisance, he or she is an annoyance.

Avoid somebody or something like the plague is an idiom: thoughtful people avoid negative thoughts like the plague.

Who is plaguing you? If someone is plaguing you means, he or she is annoying you, causing trouble to you.

Plaque is a noun. Plaque has two distinct meanings.

Plaque is the result of poor oral hygiene among people. Plaque is caused by the built-up or adding up of bacterial deposits on the teeth, tongue and gums.
Plaque causes bad breath in people. As the plaque grows and hardens it becomes tartar.

Plaque is the tartar formed in the teeth.

With the help of dentists, or practicing dental hygiene one can avoid the formation of plaque.

Plaque is a stone slab, a piece of stone, usually flat; a piece of metal or porcelain used to fix on a wall as on ornamentation for the structure, used as memorial, used to indicate some information (who laid the foundation stone for the building, who and when).

Every country has plaques in memory of those who have had done something for others.

Martyrs for one or the other cause are remembered in spots of significance with plaques.

Custom-printed plaques, and quotes or citations or saying are printed or embossed on plaques for displaying in an office or house.

Politicians vie to unveil a plaque!