plod

verb

ˈpläd How to pronounce plod (audio)
Definition of plodnext
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
as in to drag
to move slowly plodded reluctantly off to work

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to shuffle
to move heavily or clumsily wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes

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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 Loaded trucks plodded through the crowd with people in their cargo beds throwing tomatoes at the revelers — who, in turn, hurled them at one another. — ABC News, 26 Aug. 2026 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 See All Example Sentences for plod
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plod
  1. struggle
  2. stumble
  3. drag
  4. shuffle
  5. strive
  6. trudge
  7. crawl
  8. stomp
Verb
  • Yet when asked to move beyond answering questions to framing their own, many struggled.
    — Washington Post, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026
  • Tommy Novak got two goals in the first six minutes and Egor Chinakhov also scored for the Penguins, who moved Crosby and the 40-year-old Malkin onto their top line before the game in an effort to spark their struggling lineup.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 8 Nov. 2026
Definition of struggle
Verb
  • The last chance for the Mountaineers ended when Hawkins stumbled and fell in the end zone for a safety in the final two minutes.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Nov. 2026
  • For seven games, Myles Garrett could only watch the Rams from a stadium suite, on television or from the sideline as the team favored to win the Super Bowl stumbled to a slow start.
    — Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of stumble
Verb
  • Multiple videos show agents smash her car window, drag her out and carry her face down by her arms and legs through the street while handcuffed.
    — Beret Leone, CBS News, 10 Nov. 2026
  • While the rest of Australia struggled with lockdown and tight regulations that dragged on, Queensland fared generally well, with looser rules and relatively low numbers of cases after the initial shutdowns.
    — Erin Florio, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of drag
Verb
  • Findings of no effect tend to either be shuffled off to low-profile journals or left behind as unpublished lab lore.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 2 Nov. 2026
  • For the most part, this was a second consecutive solid performance by a group that will likely undergo major personnel shuffling all season.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of shuffle
Verb
  • No more striving to be perfect and separate, to dominate and exploit.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2026
  • The Huskies were lucky to have Anderson, whose striving for every possible advantage went beyond the physical.
    — Matt Le Cren, Chicago Tribune, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of strive
Verb
  • There were tent camps on both sides of the border, caravans of people trudging through Central America and concerns about newcomers overwhelming social services.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Cross over North Figueroa Street, and trudge up the hill before you, which has an average grade of about 15%.
    — Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of trudge
Verb
  • This suspect returns back to his car, retrieves his handgun, walks back over to the victim, who’s trying to crawl away with her life, and executes her.
    — Dan Sullivan, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Nov. 2026
  • That’s because the moon began to crawl across it about half an hour ago.
    — IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of crawl
Verb
  • Everyone’s favorite kaiju is stomping its way back to the box office.
    — Jordan Moreau, Variety, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Children who are interested in dinosaurs can stomp over to 95th Street Library for a paleontological dig at the Dino Research Center.
    — Ashlee Conour, Chicago Tribune, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of stomp

Browse Nearby Words

plinths
plod
plodded
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Cite this Entry

“Plod.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plod. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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