plodded

verb

past tense of plod
1
as in labored
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 stumbled
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually oxen plodding through deep mud

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in dragged
to move slowly plodded reluctantly off to work

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in shuffled
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 plodded 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 The Demon Deacons coach ran towards Belichick while removing his hat as the six-time Super Bowl champion coach plodded his way across the field for a blow-by handshake. — Andrew McCarty, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plodded
  1. labored
  2. stumbled
  3. dragged
  4. shuffled
  5. struggled
  6. trudged
  7. crawled
  8. stomped
Verb
  • That doesn’t mean the subscription businesses that media companies labored to build will collapse, Cohen said.
    — Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 7 July 2026
  • On the same pitch earlier, South Africa labored past Bangladesh by four wickets and waited for India's fate.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 June 2026
Definition of labored
Verb
  • One day, in Korea, near the Chosin Reservoir, his marine division stumbled into a surprise attack by a hundred thousand Chinese infantry.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
  • Chipmakers have stumbled as some investors are taking profits after strong rallies.
    — John Towfighi, CNN Money, 9 July 2026
Definition of stumbled
Verb
  • Two men dragged a third into the emergency room and laid him on the floor, according to footage shown in court.
    — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026
  • His efforts dragged him into a love triangle with Annis and her former partner, Corbin Mims, which ultimately left Caleb single ahead of Casa Amor, the show’s midseason twist.
    — Tanya Fedak, Variety, 10 July 2026
Definition of dragged
Verb
  • One Wednesday evening in May, at the boutique hotel Dream Hollywood — located just off the Walk of Fame — a young hotel staff member shuffled over to her co-worker to discuss a special guest on the top floor.
    — Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026
  • Overshadowed by the Folarin Balogun mess is how impressively Rudi Garcia shuffled his midfield and organized his tactics to perfectly counter how Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT wanted to play.
    — Stuart James, New York Times, 7 July 2026
Definition of shuffled
Verb
  • Turkey struggled against the USMNT’s corners throughout the game, with multiple chances created from outswinging corners towards the penalty spot.
    — Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 14 July 2026
  • The visit comes as Garrity trails Shapiro by roughly 20 points, raising questions about how much political influence DeSantis carries in a battleground state where his 2024 presidential campaign struggled to break through.
    — Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 14 July 2026
Definition of struggled
Verb
  • In the bowels of Huntsman Arena, more than an hour after his second NBA Summer League appearance, Darryn Peterson trudged slowly into the media room at the University of Utah, eased into a chair and prepared to answer questions from the media.
    — Tony Jones, New York Times, 10 July 2026
  • Claus trudged to the monitor, watched the foul on an agonizing loop and promptly handed Balogun a red card.
    — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 2 July 2026
Definition of trudged
Verb
  • Hull testified that Robinson later returned in different clothing, walking with a limp, rolled onto the roof of a building on campus and crawled to the edge of the rooftop around the time the shot was fired.
    — N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 10 July 2026
  • Their father dismounted, went down on foot, climbed the fence his son had crawled under.
    — Emily Ruskovich, The Atlantic, 7 July 2026
Definition of crawled
Verb
  • On Monday night, a 39-year-old man wearing a Spurs jersey was stomped and punched after Game 3 while walking down West 47th Street, about 15 blocks from the arena.
    — Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 14 June 2026
  • It's been 33 years since Jurassic Park first stomped into theaters, and blockbusters haven't been the same since.
    — Huntley Woods, Entertainment Weekly, 11 June 2026
Definition of stomped

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Cite this Entry

“Plodded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plodded. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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