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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in dragged
to move slowly
plodded reluctantly off to work
Synonyms & Similar Words
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4
as in shuffled
to move heavily or clumsily
wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes
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Example Sentences
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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
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
Verb
-
The Thunder labored through a 111-103 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday in a decisive Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals.—
Mark Medina,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
-
Even the involuntary action of breathing was labored, and constantly faltering.—
Casey Ross,
STAT,
19 May 2026
Verb
-
OpenAI, Google and Perplexity have rolled out research tools and agents for shopping, though some of those efforts have stumbled due to technical bugs or challenges with onboarding retailers.—
Annie Palmer,
CNBC,
27 May 2026
-
The Liberty have stumbled to a 3-4 record to start the season.—
Kels Dayton,
Hartford Courant,
26 May 2026
Verb
-
Although Schwarze ultimately prevailed, the party’s divisions were on display as the endorsement battle dragged on through six ballots.—
Jay Gabler,
Twin Cities,
30 May 2026
-
But as his contentious divorce and custody battle against Jolie dragged on, reports emerged in 2021 that Maddox had testified in the case.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
Verb
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While many of the brand’s lifestyle models are frequently shuffled in and out of production, the 9060 has held on as a staple of the brand’s lineup nearly four years after its retail debut.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
28 May 2026
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He then was shuffled between immigration centers in California, Arizona and Louisiana — before landing in Equatorial Guinea almost six months ago.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 May 2026
Verb
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Notably, the agency completed more than 85% of its internal affairs investigations within 180 days, a mark the department had struggled to reach in recent years.—
Jakob Rodgers,
Mercury News,
28 May 2026
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But privately, there were times Halverson struggled.—
Jourdan Rodrigue,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
Verb
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Earlier this year, 27,000 runners trudged through the city on a course that wound from Dodger Stadium to Century City.—
James Queally,
Los Angeles Times,
30 May 2026
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This serves as an important reminder as Lyon’s players trudged down the tunnel, runners-up medals in hand.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
23 May 2026
Verb
-
The truck driver crawled to the side of the road and the gunman fled.—
Kristi Miller,
Twin Cities,
26 May 2026
-
But Inglis kept losing partners to Punjab fast bowler Marco Jansen (2-33) and leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal (2-25) and Lucknow crawled to 196.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 May 2026
Verb
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The accordionist stomped sideways under the stage lights, sweat running down his temples, looking like Angus Young sans schoolboy shorts.—
Katie Thornton,
Harpers Magazine,
26 May 2026
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Finally, after my sister had been hacking away for three minutes or so, one man stood, stared, anger evident on his face, and stomped away.—
Tom Levenson,
Time,
20 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plodded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plodded. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
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