PLODS Synonyms: 159 Similar and Opposite Words

plods

verb

present tense third-person singular of plod

as in strives

to devote serious and sustained effort plodded night and day to get the assignment done

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stumbles

to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually oxen plodding through deep mud

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in drags

to move slowly plodded reluctantly off to work

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in shuffles

to move heavily or clumsily wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for plods

Verb

The team is keenly aware that in the modern market, trust is not bought but earned, and Vita Bella strives to achieve this every step of the way.

— William Jones, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Through struggle, sacrifice, and an unwavering yearning for justice, Valjean strives to complete his path to redemption and give Cosette a future filled with love and freedom.

— Leo Barraclough, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of strives

Verb

Byron Nelson stumbles again Normally an area power, Trophy Club Byron Nelson is off to a rocky start.

— Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Sep. 2026
Camp’s turn here as a kooky neighbor who stumbles into an unexpected romance is exactly the kind of role that gets a room talking (and laughing).

— Clayton Davis, Variety, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of stumbles

Verb

M’Benga drags him into a private room to discuss the situation, and whether or not Reeger is driven by revenge, not reason.

— Keith Phipps, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2026
New York — The Iran war has saddled Americans with a massive energy bill that continues to mount as the conflict drags on.

— Matt Egan, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of drags

Verb

The line shuffles forward quickly, and my heart knots in my chest as Heartfillers are dosed to each person up ahead.

— Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026
In the clip, Dawkins shuffles out onto the field with no shirt, a pair of Crocs and a clear plastic bag ready to get the ol' inside-out treatment.

— Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of shuffles

Verb

But that feels very different after Brown’s injury and Doubs’ struggles in his debut.

— Chad Graff, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
The move was sure to spark criticism that the president was paying Americans to vote Republican as the party struggles to match Democrats’ enthusiasm and faces a challenging midterm outlook.

— Joey Garrison, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of struggles

Verb

Six months later, the war trudges on, indirectly ensnaring much of the world by severely disrupting global trade.

— Mark Sappenfield, Christian Science Monitor, 27 Aug. 2026
Enola dutifully trudges between clues and possibilities, shuffling through crime scenes and racing around shady spaces, all of this much more paint-by-numbers than connect-the-dots.

— Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 30 June 2026

Definition of trudges

Verb

Hairy-nosed wombat births are hard to spot, as after about a 30-day pregnancy, the joey crawls into its mother’s pouch.

— Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 16 Aug. 2026
Researchers have developed a new control framework that enables humanoid robots to perform agile movements, including army crawls, breakdancing and backflips.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of crawls

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.

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ploddingly

plods

plop

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“Plods.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plods. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of plods

verb

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