PLOD Synonyms: 159 Similar and Opposite Words

plod

verb

ˈpläd

Definition of plod

as in to struggle

to devote serious and sustained effort plodded night and day to get the assignment done

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to stumble

to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually oxen plodding through deep mud

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to drag

to move slowly plodded reluctantly off to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to shuffle

to move heavily or clumsily wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 plod Santa, who was heavy and plodding with bad knees, couldn’t keep up as Gayle tailed this man through an alleyway. — Wilbert L. Cooper, Longreads, 25 Aug. 2026 Events plod forward, one after the other, and although Michael Shaeffer is a thoroughly compelling presence as the cruel and chronically unstable monarch Aerys, other performances seem nuance-free. — Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 10 Aug. 2026 That optionality may be more enticing for New York than just signing a plodding third center. — Tom Rende, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026 The answer is complex, highlighting the dramatic differences between the public perception of a case and the careful, plodding way that evidence must be presented in a courtroom, experts said. — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 27 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for plod

Recent Examples of Synonyms for plod

Verb

Underwood, then a true freshman, struggled in that meeting, and his inconsistent play against Western Michigan (12-of-22 passing) has led to questions about his job status.

— Scott Dochterman, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Despite being one of Africa’s largest oil producers, the Dangote Refinery initially struggled to secure enough domestic crude and had to turn to international suppliers at a premium.

— Nana Menya Ayensu, semafor.com, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of struggle

Verb

But since then, Nosková has solidified while Sabalenka has stumbled, and the Czech has also gotten through some tough matches to reach this one.

— Ava Wallace, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Byron Nelson stumbles again Normally an area power, Trophy Club Byron Nelson is off to a rocky start.

— Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of stumble

Verb

And my sister dragged me to Loulu, the café-market with an Erewhon collaboration and Cosmic Bliss soft-serve, a lovely afternoon fix for those of us on the East Coast without an Erewhon.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 16 Sep. 2026
Potelle’s home — like many others’ — remains contaminated as disputes with her insurance company drag on.

— Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of drag

Verb

The space suddenly swells with agents, assistants, clients and others shuffling through for lunch.

— Oren Peleg, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026
Others, for certain, are incubated by gridiron versions of cheer moms, who shuffle their sons around in search of stardom.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of shuffle

Verb

Similarly, advertisers strive to prevent their ads from appearing next to low-quality content.

— Roman Vrublivskyi, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2026
Till is a member of the Firekeeper Alliance, which has close ties with the festival, and strives to decrease the suicide rate among indigenous youths through teaching them about heavy metal.

— Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of strive

Verb

Half of the game's length is swallowed up by me trudging from point A to point B while characters yap endlessly about the current goings-on.

— Gabriel Zamora, PC Magazine, 10 Sep. 2026
Church bells, owl hoots and sprinklers keeping the grass hydrated during this dry spell fill the space between the occasional motor trudging along a main road devoid of commotion.

— Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of trudge

Verb

In fact, agents are better equipped to do this than LLMs, as they can be configured more accurately to crawl certain sites or sources and therefore return more accurate results.

— Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2026
Their mother had crawled, wounded, on the floor before the brothers fired a final, fatal blast.

— James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of crawl

Browse Nearby Words

plinths

plod

plodded

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Plod.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plod. Accessed 18 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of plod

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

churlish

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Popular in Wordplay

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18

Popular

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Games & Quizzes