as in to argue
to state (something) as a reason in support of or against something under consideration
can I plead temporary insanity for having made that foolish decision?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of plead
Kohberger later pleaded guilty to the murders and was sentenced to four consecutive life terms in prison.
—
Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 13 June 2026
Hader pleaded not guilty in both cases, according to court logs.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 13 June 2026
Phillips pleaded guilty in that case and was sentenced in March 2024 to three years in state prison, records show.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 13 June 2026
In March, Freeman pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter for causing Ethan’s death.
—Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 13 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for plead
Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 13 June 2026
Hader pleaded not guilty in both cases, according to court logs.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 13 June 2026
Phillips pleaded guilty in that case and was sentenced in March 2024 to three years in state prison, records show.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 13 June 2026
In March, Freeman pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter for causing Ethan’s death.
—Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 13 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for plead
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plead
Verb
-
Opponents to the development argued that the circumstances are different and that the court's decision does not apply to the Greeley case.—
Dillon Thomas,
CBS News,
16 June 2026
-
One of the project’s most significant adversaries is the city of Sacramento — while the area is not under their governance, city officials argue the development would violate a decades-old habitat conservation agreement with the county.—
Jennah Pendleton,
Sacbee.com,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
Its 33-40 record is better than that of the Tigers and Royals, two teams expected to contend in 2026.—
Stephen J. Nesbitt,
New York Times,
16 June 2026
-
The District contends that the County lacks the legal authority to take additional funds from local schools.—
Zachary Bynum,
CBS News,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
Betani was the sole vote against appointing Vaccaro, reasoning that voters should be the ones to make this decision in November.—
Richard Ramos,
CBS News,
17 June 2026
-
Folding laundry, loading dishwashers, cleaning kitchens, and navigating cluttered homes require many of the same perception, manipulation, and reasoning capabilities that would eventually allow robots to operate independently on a battlefield.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
Three years ago, Balogun came to Orlando with England and the US pulled out an all-out offensive to convince him to play for their side.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
13 June 2026
-
The person on the phone pretends to be IT support and tries to convince the employee to install remote desktop software.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
Trump has insisted Iran end its nuclear weapons program and surrender its enriched uranium.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
13 June 2026
-
Rather than containing culture in a single venue, Son de L’amour moves through spaces, as if insisting that memory should not be stationary.—
Desjah Altvater,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
The Big 12’s overarching thesis is that Texas Tech shouldn’t be able to play an athlete who has admitted to betting on his own team and who, the conference asserts, has placed thousands of bets on college and pro sports either directly or through an intermediary from 2022 to 2026.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
15 June 2026
-
Trump has asserted multiple times in recent weeks the countries were on the cusp of a deal.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plead.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plead. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
