Synonyms of plod

plod

verb

ˈpläd 

1

as in to struggle

to devote serious and sustained effort

plodded night and day to get the assignment done

Synonyms & Similar Words

• struggle
• strive
• labor
• work
• try
• endeavor
• toil
• plow
• slave
• tug
• sweat
• hustle
• dig (away)
• drudge
• slog
• beaver (away)
• plug
• hump
• grub
• strain
• travail
• bang away
• moil
• fag
• peg (away)
• apply (oneself)
• sweat blood
• buckle (down)
• trudge
• attack
• exert
• pitch in
• essay
• wade
• exercise
• drive
• scratch
• hammer (away)
• dig in
• eke out
• knuckle down
• grind (out)
• overwork
• overexert
• put out
• scrabble

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• break
• slacken
• ease (up)
• let up
• bum
• lounge
• laze
• shirk
• hang (around or out)
• chill
• idle
• rest
• relax
• slack (off)
• goof (off)
• bask
• loll
• hack (around)
• loaf
• unwind
• hang
• play
• dally
• repose
• dillydally
• trifle
• goldbrick
• dabble
• fool around
• veg out
• footle
• goof (around)
• doodle
• mess around
• monkey (around)
• hang about
• putter (around)
• potter (around)
• fribble

2

as in to stumble

to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually

oxen plodding through deep mud

Synonyms & Similar Words

• struggle
• stumble
• trudge
• limp
• shuffle
• flounder
• blunder
• jog
• lurch
• flog
• fumble
• bumble
• lumber
• sway
• falter
• shamble
• wallow
• stagger
• reel
• totter
• muddle
• welter
• teeter

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• coast
• fly
• glide
• sail
• zip
• zoom
• kilt

3

as in to drag

to move slowly

plodded reluctantly off to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• drag
• crawl
• creep
• shuffle
• snail
• poke
• limp
• inch
• ooze
• slouch
• trudge
• nose
• creak (along)
• shamble
• tramp
• lumber

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• race
• speed
• fly
• float
• glide
• sail
• whiz
• zip
• hurry
• tear

4

as in to shuffle

to move heavily or clumsily

wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• shuffle
• stomp
• stumble
• trudge
• shamble
• slough
• lump
• barge
• lurch
• weave
• clump
• flounder
• haul
• stamp
• drag
• tramp
• slog
• stump
• galumph
• pound
• scuff
• stagger
• scuffle
• flog
• lumber
• tromp
• sway
• waddle
• flop
• totter
• blunder
• reel
• careen
• dodder
• wobble
• teeter

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• coast
• slide
• breeze
• glide
• whisk
• waltz
• drift
• hang
• float
• hover
• waft
• poise

Example Sentences

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