as in argues
to state (something) as a reason in support of or against something under consideration
can I plead temporary insanity for having made that foolish decision?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 pleads
York pleads his case to the earl of Salisbury and Salisbury’s son, the earl of Warwick.
—
Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Apr. 2026
Other suspect pleads not guilty Rodriguez, 18, was arraigned on the same indictment and pleaded not guilty Tuesday.
—Christina Fan, CBS News, 15 Apr. 2026
Heuermann pleads guilty to seven counts of murder, involving the killings of Barthelemy, Brainard-Barnes, Costello, Costilla, Mack, Taylor and Waterman.
—ABC News, 8 Apr. 2026
Bree pleads with her not to go with him.
—Pamela Avila, USA Today, 17 Feb. 2026
Bree pleads with her not to go.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 17 Feb. 2026
But in an earlier scene, Nixon pleads with his wife not to divorce him, reminding her of their idyllic courtship days; Williams’ music here is a lyrical love theme for solo trumpet and strings — pure bittersweet Americana.
—Tim Greiving, HollywoodReporter, 20 Dec. 2025
Williamson pleads ‘not guilty’ Almost a full year after she was interviewed by the FBI, Williamson was arrested in her Carmichael home.
—Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 15 Nov. 2025
After her sisters turn to dust, Winifred pleads with Becca for help.
—Kelsie Gibson, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Apr. 2026
Other suspect pleads not guilty Rodriguez, 18, was arraigned on the same indictment and pleaded not guilty Tuesday.
—Christina Fan, CBS News, 15 Apr. 2026
Heuermann pleads guilty to seven counts of murder, involving the killings of Barthelemy, Brainard-Barnes, Costello, Costilla, Mack, Taylor and Waterman.
—ABC News, 8 Apr. 2026
Bree pleads with her not to go with him.
—Pamela Avila, USA Today, 17 Feb. 2026
Bree pleads with her not to go.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 17 Feb. 2026
But in an earlier scene, Nixon pleads with his wife not to divorce him, reminding her of their idyllic courtship days; Williams’ music here is a lyrical love theme for solo trumpet and strings — pure bittersweet Americana.
—Tim Greiving, HollywoodReporter, 20 Dec. 2025
Williamson pleads ‘not guilty’ Almost a full year after she was interviewed by the FBI, Williamson was arrested in her Carmichael home.
—Kate Wolffe, Sacbee.com, 15 Nov. 2025
After her sisters turn to dust, Winifred pleads with Becca for help.
—Kelsie Gibson, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pleads
Verb
-
More than 250 security leaders helped shape the briefing, which argues the challenge is no longer just finding flaws, but deciding which ones actually pose real risk – and fixing them before they can be turned into working exploits.—
Stefanie Schappert,
Fortune,
24 Apr. 2026
-
The mega-corporation (owned by Amazon), as Tolentino argues, budgets for this kind of light shoplifting anyway.—
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The company contends that since US regulators didn’t require a cancer warning, federal law bars those types of suits.—
Jef Feeley,
Bloomberg,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Abbott contends the policy weakens statewide coordination with federal authorities.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The system reasons underneath, processing infinitely complex 3D scenarios, handling trade clashes, regulations and tradeoffs - learning from user feedback over time to eliminate the need for users to supervise its intelligence.—
Alexander Puutio,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The author insists there was no bigger fan of the Jackson children and the Jackson 5 than Joseph, whose main goal in forming the group in the first place was to protect them.—
Staff Author,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
-
But Grindr insists this isn’t going to be a gay rave.—
Tara Palmeri,
Vanity Fair,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
In the months before that change, Sun asserts, its management had been trying to pressure him into investing more in WLF.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2026
-
The filing Monday asserts that a shot was heard after Allen, who was outfitted with a shotgun, handgun and several knives, ran through a metal detector.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
27 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pleads.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pleads. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
