PLODDING Synonyms: 292 Similar and Opposite Words

plodding 1 of 2

adjective

as in relentless

Related Words

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Dissimilar Words

as in ambling

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

plodding

2 of 2

verb

present participle of plod

as in laboring

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stumbling

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in dragging

to move slowly plodded reluctantly off to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in shuffling

to move heavily or clumsily wayfarers plodding across the sandy wastes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 plodding

Adjective

During the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, activists from the gay community lambasted him and his institute for the plodding pace of research on the virus. — Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 28 July 2026 The audience was still as the band started playing a plodding rhythm. — Literary Hub, 27 July 2026 Brunson was too small (6-foot-2), not long enough (with a 6-foot-4 wingspan) and too plodding. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 3 June 2026 Neither is known for having much of an off-the-dribble game that could hurt the plodding Porzingis or Horford. — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2026 His jogging gait is a bit plodding. — Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 5 Mar. 2026 His two-time matchup was Alejandro Kirk, an excellent hitter but, at 5-foot-8 and 245 pounds, a plodding runner. — Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 4 Mar. 2026 Where the film falters is in its plodding rhythm and clunky dialogue, much of which is delivered too flatly by actors who don’t exactly steal their scenes. — Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 4 Feb. 2026 At a plodding pace, the desert wilderness can be admired in all its granular splendor. — Anna Zacharias, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Jan. 2026

Verb

That optionality may be more enticing for New York than just signing a plodding third center. — Tom Rende, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026 The answer is complex, highlighting the dramatic differences between the public perception of a case and the careful, plodding way that evidence must be presented in a courtroom, experts said. — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 27 July 2026 Even the special effects emerge as less than spectacular — especially since Jeannot Szwarc’s plodding direction affords ample time for one to sit there and figure out just how they were accomplished. — Arthur Knight, HollywoodReporter, 25 June 2026 But plodding through them offers little pleasure, guilty or otherwise. — Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2026 The other human beings his size have either been plodding trees who can barely get up the floor or rail-thin gazelles who can’t handle the G-forces their bodies generate at full speed. — Jared Weiss, New York Times, 24 May 2026 Just last week, an Alameda County jury awarded $16 million to one such abuse victim, in a key case aimed at spurring long-plodding settlement talks between other abuse victims and the diocese. — Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 30 Apr. 2026 The Senate should be plodding, and steady, and boring, and trustworthy. — Scott Pelley, CBS News, 26 Apr. 2026 The story was plodding, the characters frustrating, and the transitions through time poorly executed. — Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for plodding

Adjective

The Cubs have been relentless against lefties this season, and that pressure continued Wednesday with lefty Jackson Kent, a Lake Park graduate from Hanover Park, making his major-league debut for the Nationals.

— Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2026
The brutal nausea and vomiting of norovirus, for instance, subsides in one to three days; even the relentless diarrhea of cyclosporiasis can let up in a couple of days with an antibiotic.

— Erica Sloan, Washington Post, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of relentless

Adjective

For this Nuggets lineup, the average comes out to a pedestrian 6-9, with three capable perimeter defenders to assist the heavy-footed centers, two 40% 3-point shooters to space the floor, and a surplus of play-making talent.

— Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 16 Oct. 2025
Post struggled in his first go, thrown into the fire against the best team in the league that plays a style designed to punish heavy-footed centers.

— Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 2 Feb. 2025

Definition of heavy-footed

Verb

While practicing for a sixth straight day, laboring in a heat index pushing 90 degrees, the Chiefs were bound to be a bit ill-mannered.

— Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Aug. 2026
Complicated births that require, for example, extended time laboring will now be differentiated and might cost more, while uncomplicated births will cost less.

— Camille A. Clare, STAT, 23 July 2026

Definition of laboring

Verb

Such a contrast to the wonderful Bootham Crescent, York’s home until 2020 and within stumbling distance of not only the famous Minster but all the city’s many other attractions.

— Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2026
The most underachieving team on the Los Angeles sports landscape is embarrassingly stumbling through another season.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 July 2026

Definition of stumbling

Verb

Lyman and her family stood to leave, and although none of them spoke, the sound of more than 30 mourners shuffling out of a quiet room was enough to halt the court proceedings for a moment.

— Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 6 Aug. 2026
The results indicated continued progress in CVS' broader turnaround plan, which has involved cutting $2 billion in costs, closing underperforming stores, shuffling leadership and reducing costs within Medicare Advantage plans.

— Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of shuffling

Adjective

Their unremitting appeal lies in their ability to make fashion feel deeply individual—all the more remarkable given their status as both designers and public figures.

— Cortne Bonilla, Vogue, 12 June 2026
The source material is occasionally witty and obsessive, but also carries a tone of unremitting nastiness.

— Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 9 June 2026

Definition of unremitting

Adjective

No more distractions, no more lingering questions, just a baller who loves this sport and continues to level up.

— Colton Pouncy, New York Times, 31 July 2026
Although the treatment significantly reduced the cancer, follow-up exams showed lingering traces of the disease.

— Khloe Quill, FOXNews.com, 25 July 2026

Definition of lingering

Browse Nearby Words

plodders

plodding

ploddingly

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Style

“Plodding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plodding. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of plodding

adjective

verb

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