1
: a legal suit or action
2
: an allegation made by a party in support of a cause: such as
a
: an allegation of fact compare demurrer entry 1
b(1)
: a defendant's answer to a plaintiff's declaration in common-law practice
(2)
: an accused person's answer to a charge or indictment in criminal practice
c
: a plea of guilty to an indictment
3
: something offered by way of excuse or justification
left early with the plea of a headache
4
: an earnest entreaty : appeal
their plea for understanding must be answered
Examples of plea in a Sentence
We are making a plea to all companies to stop polluting the environment.
The defendant entered a plea of not guilty.
Recent Examples on the Web
Rodriquez's guilty plea resolved the Texas murder case ahead of a trial set for 2026, per court records.
—
Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2025
Prosecutors ultimately dropped the death penalty, and Smith was resentenced to 30 years in a plea deal in February after Wolfson removed two prosecutors from the case, citing misconduct.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 25 Oct. 2025
Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, of Melbourne, Florida, entered a not guilty plea Thursday to counts of destruction of property by means of fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce and timber set afire, according to FOX 11 Los Angeles.
—Greg Norman, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2025
Entering a guilty plea in 2023 and stepping down from the Binance top job, Zhao got out of prison after four months in September 2024.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plea
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show current usage.
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Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2025
Prosecutors ultimately dropped the death penalty, and Smith was resentenced to 30 years in a plea deal in February after Wolfson removed two prosecutors from the case, citing misconduct.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 25 Oct. 2025
Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, of Melbourne, Florida, entered a not guilty plea Thursday to counts of destruction of property by means of fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce and timber set afire, according to FOX 11 Los Angeles.
—Greg Norman, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2025
Entering a guilty plea in 2023 and stepping down from the Binance top job, Zhao got out of prison after four months in September 2024.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plea
Cite this Entry
“Plea.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plea. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
plea
noun1
: a defendant's answer to a lawsuit or to a criminal charge
a plea of guilty
2
: something offered as an excuse
left early with the plea of a headache
3
: an earnest appeal
a plea for mercy
Legal Definition
plea
noun1
a
: an allegation of fact in civil litigation made in response to a claim compare demurrer
b
: a defendant's answer to a plaintiff's claim in civil litigation
Note: Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and in states where they have been adopted, civil pleas are abolished, and answers and motions are used instead. Such pleas were used at common law.
—
dilatory plea
\
ˈdi-lə-ˌtōr-ē-
\
: a common-law plea which is intended to defeat the pending action or proceeding without involving any decision on the merits of the case
—
plea in abatement
: a plea entered by a party seeking postponement or dismissal of an action by setting forth some matter or defect regarding procedure, jurisdiction, or timing
called also plea of abatement
—
plea in bar
: a plea that alleges the existence of an absolute bar (as a statute of limitations) to an action
—
plea of abatement
: plea in abatement in this entry
2
a
: an accused party's answer to a criminal charge or indictment
b
: a plea of guilty
3
: an earnest entreaty
Etymology
Anglo-French plei, plai legal action, trial, from Old French plait, plaid, from Medieval Latin placitum, from Latin, decision, decree, from neuter of placitus, past participle of placēre to please, be decided
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