1
as in to struggle
to devote serious and sustained effort
plodded night and day to get the assignment done
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to stumble
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
oxen plodding through deep mud
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
4
as in to shuffle
to move heavily or clumsily
wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of plod
At the start of this stylish but plodding film, which premiered at SXSW ahead of its March 27 release on Prime Video, the suburban mother loses a pearl earring.
—
Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Mar. 2025
The dramatized version simply floats, roils and plods forward as if being tugged dutifully along, ticking off checkpoints along the way.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2025
There are some baffling tonal shifts between goofy sci-fi and high drama and the whole thing just takes too long to get going, spending much of its runtime plodding around on Earth.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 20 Feb. 2025
The sequel to last season’s thrilling run to the Western Conference finals has been plodding, a hard-to-watch mix of turnovers, isolation dribbling and slow pace.
—Jon Krawczynski, The Athletic, 18 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plod
Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Mar. 2025
The dramatized version simply floats, roils and plods forward as if being tugged dutifully along, ticking off checkpoints along the way.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2025
There are some baffling tonal shifts between goofy sci-fi and high drama and the whole thing just takes too long to get going, spending much of its runtime plodding around on Earth.
—Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 20 Feb. 2025
The sequel to last season’s thrilling run to the Western Conference finals has been plodding, a hard-to-watch mix of turnovers, isolation dribbling and slow pace.
—Jon Krawczynski, The Athletic, 18 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plod
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plod
Verb
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Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki has struggled with his command in his stateside debut.—
Peter Chawaga,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 May 2025
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Megill struggled with his command, putting the first three batters on before getting an out.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
11 May 2025
Verb
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Meanwhile, the only truly happy artist in Ira’s friend group — played to uproarious perfection by Stanley Tucci — isn’t even much of an artist at all but a shameless name-dropper who seems to stumble into constant success without even trying.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
9 May 2025
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Still, many times, most seasoned and skilled leaders stumble from time to time.—
Phil Portman,
Forbes.com,
9 May 2025
Verb
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Andre needs some help The Brazil international midfielder dragged himself from the field near the end on Saturday, with Pereira later allaying any fears about an injury.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
12 May 2025
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Gunther dragged Cole into the ring and threatened to power bomb Cole before McAfee interrupted with a bicycle kick.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
11 May 2025
Verb
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Bemused tourists attempt to shuffle through the acrid red and blue flare smoke.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
18 May 2025
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All of those departures except for Stark came before the draft, meaning Paton was left to shuffle the chairs and adjust on the fly to ensure the Broncos were prepared.—
Parker Gabriel,
Denver Post,
16 May 2025
Verb
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Cupich described the pope as an organized and meticulous worker who is humble and strives to take in a variety of different perspectives.—
Angie Leventis Lourgos,
Chicago Tribune,
9 May 2025
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Martinez also serves as a mentor for both the Reel Champs’ Executive Diversity Mentorship Program, as well as the Group Effort Initiative Mentorship Program, which strives to create a pipeline for members of underrepresented communities to establish long-term careers within entertainment.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
8 May 2025
Verb
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Former Everton forward Richarlison did his own emotional lap of his former home — a slow, shirtless, bittersweet trudge back through memory lane — after Tottenham Hotspur’s 3-2 defeat at Goodison in January.—
Patrick Boyland,
New York Times,
15 May 2025
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Amid all the chaos, the Pirates are trudging through a mediocre season.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
7 May 2025
Verb
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The woman crawled to her bathroom and pulled the emergency cord, then the facility staff called 911, deputies said.—
Olivia Lloyd,
Sun Sentinel,
22 May 2025
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Here, 15 of the softest sheets that will convince you that crawling into bed at 9 p.m. is equivalent to self-care.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
16 May 2025
Verb
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While wearing a mini tuxedo, Lorenzo slowly stomped down the aisle and paused at the puddle of petals.—
Ashlyn Robinette,
People.com,
20 May 2025
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Boston Haitian community joyfully stomped, danced and marched their way down Blue Hill Ave.—
Grace Zokovitch,
Boston Herald,
19 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Plod.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plod. Accessed 25 May. 2025.
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