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
Main roads throughout the city were largely clear Monday morning, but pedestrians had to plod through snow on some sidewalks and multiple subway lines with above-ground tracks saw delays.
—
Charlotte Kramon, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
And while that hasn’t always been by choice (the draft lottery didn’t do them any favors), the Red Wings’ patient, plodding rebuild has been a case study in just how long the process can take if just a couple of elements go wrong.
—Max Bultman, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
Minnesota’s defense has been unreliable lately, but Wisconsin’s offense has plodded most of the year.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 28 Nov. 2025
For months, the two initiatives plodded along, with photo ops and declarations of good will.
—Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plod
Charlotte Kramon, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
And while that hasn’t always been by choice (the draft lottery didn’t do them any favors), the Red Wings’ patient, plodding rebuild has been a case study in just how long the process can take if just a couple of elements go wrong.
—Max Bultman, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
Minnesota’s defense has been unreliable lately, but Wisconsin’s offense has plodded most of the year.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 28 Nov. 2025
For months, the two initiatives plodded along, with photo ops and declarations of good will.
—Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plod
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plod
Verb
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Groceries and warehouse clubs like Sam’s and Costco do flawlessly what many of us struggle to do at home — roast a whole chicken to golden-brown perfection on a rotating spit so that every morsel is cooked evenly and deliciously tender.—
Gretchen McKay,
Twin Cities,
25 Feb. 2026
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Instead, 10 games into his college career, Arenas is struggling mightily with his offensive efficiency.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar stumbled, springing a 2-on-1 break with Boldy feeding a cross-ice pass to Marcus Johansson, whose wrist shot hit the left post, then got a piece of the goalie before a Colorado defender swatted it away from the goalmouth.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
27 Feb. 2026
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Surveillance video from that night shows a man wearing a Blackhawks jersey entering the store, then stumbling out before a struggle spilled into the street.—
Darius Johnson,
CBS News,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But Coach never agreed to that deal, and once Ozzy got the key on the ground, Coach dragged it over to win supplies.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Feb. 2026
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Software stocks have been caught up in a sell-off that dragged the sector into bear market territory, amid fears AI could make software as a service — or SaaS — obsolete.—
Chloe Taylor,
CNBC,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Moderates and conservatives shuffle through quietly, hoping to blend in.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
26 Feb. 2026
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These technologies are designed to address bottlenecks that come from having to shuffle data around within a data center—a challenge that grows more complex as different chip types need to communicate with one another.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Instead of replacing everything, Dominick and his team work within existing systems, striving to clean, structure and govern data before layering additional intelligence.—
William Jones,
Miami Herald,
24 Feb. 2026
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But all that striving for accomplishment may cost women a great deal.—
Faith Hill,
The Atlantic,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
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About half of the the 20-some folks who trudged into the club’s Woodland Hills offices were Latino.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Feb. 2026
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Before the fourth official even held his board up to signal Bailey’s substitution for Jadon Sancho in the 61st minute, the 28-year-old was already trudging off, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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As the Bay Area slowly — some might say glacially — crawls into spring, there’s nothing better than sipping a hot cup of tea or coffee to warm yourself up.—
Kate Bradshaw,
Mercury News,
25 Feb. 2026
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To want to crawl out of your own body because your brain betrayed you?—
Peter White,
Deadline,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The goal will change depending on the game — whether that’s collecting tokens, moving pieces on a board, stomping Goombas, or putting a ball in a hoop hanging 10 feet above the ground.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Feb. 2026
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On her final attempt, Gu stomped a left double-cork 1260 with a toxic grab, vaulting from sixth place into silver-medal position.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plod.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plod. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
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