plea

noun

An appeal, petition, urgent prayer or entreaty.

An excuse; an apology.

That which is alleged or pleaded, in defense or in justification.

(law) That which is alleged by a party in support of his cause.

(law) The defendant’s answer to the plaintiff’s declaration and demand.

(law) An allegation of fact in a cause, as distinguished from a demurrer.

(law) A cause in court; a lawsuit; as, the Court of Common Pleas.

verb

(chiefly England regional, Scotland) To plead; to argue.

Roots

placitumplea- · Latin · that which pleases

Synonyms for plea

supplicationn pleadingn entreatyn demurrern petitionn adjurationn requestn appealn imploringadj solicitationn

Synonyms & related words for plea

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of plea — including supplication, pleading, entreaty, demurrer, petition, adjuration. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to plea

Explore words related to plea — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include pleaded, surrebutter, surrejoinder, interplead, declinatory, suppliantly, obtest, petitionary. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for plea

Common synonyms for plea include supplication, pleading, entreaty, demurrer, petition, adjuration, request, appeal — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does plea come from?

The word plea breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root plea-, from Latin placitum (“that which pleases”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.