How to Use plea in a Sentence

plea

noun
Definition of pleanext
Synonyms for pleanext
  • The defendant entered a plea of not guilty.
  • We are making a plea to all companies to stop polluting the environment.
  • The new charges may place more pressure on him to reach a plea deal.
    — Grace Ashford, New York Times, 27 Oct. 2023
  • As part of his plea, Webster faces up to 10 years in prison.
    — Keith L. Alexander, Washington Post, 15 May 2023
  • Brown was sentenced to 25 years in state prison, per the terms of his plea agreement.
    — Cody Copeland, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 June 2024
  • Last week, as part of his plea deal, Du was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison.
    — Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Apr. 2024
  • Instead, the attorney changed the pair’s plea to guilty.
    — Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 May 2024
  • But the plea deal came apart at the last minute, during a court hearing in July.
    — Michael S. Schmidt, BostonGlobe.com, 18 Sep. 2023
  • The 28-year-old artist entered his plea in a British court on Thursday (June 15).
    — Lars Brandle, Billboard, 16 June 2023
  • Richard LeBaron was sentenced to five years behind bars in a plea deal.
    — Jessica Sager, Peoplemag, 9 Jan. 2024
  • The three misdemeanors were dropped as part of his plea agreement.
    — Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 1 Feb. 2024
  • Judge Tom Heekin imposed a sentence that had been agreed upon as part of the plea.
    — Kevin Grasha, The Enquirer, 8 June 2023
  • The last-minute plea deal was struck just before his trial was to begin.
    — Ray Sanchez, CNN, 11 June 2023
  • The defense did not say why Joly decided to change his plea.
    — Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 31 Jan. 2024
  • Before the plea deal, Smith could have spent up to five years in prison if convicted.
    — Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 13 May 2023
  • And yet, despite pleas from fans, Peppermint hasn’t been back to the franchise since.
    — Vulture, 17 Jan. 2024
  • The records also do not indicate whether the men have entered pleas.
    — Steve Thompson, Washington Post, 28 Dec. 2023
  • The trial comes after a judge threw out a plea deal last fall that would have spared Hussain prison time.
    — CBS News, 16 May 2023
  • Smith switched his plea to guilty that November, and Shah did the same at a hearing in July 2022.
    — Esther Kang, Peoplemag, 11 Sep. 2023
  • The plea deal allowed Pacheco to avoid a jury trial, which had been scheduled to start in late May.
    — Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 14 June 2024
  • Reyes has pleaded not guilty, while Huerta has yet to enter a plea.
    — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 26 Dec. 2023
  • The tribe was joined in their plea by the San Carlos Apache Tribe and archaeologists.
    — Susan Montoya Bryan, Fortune, 14 Nov. 2023
  • The decision left the judge in the case to enter a not guilty plea on Kohberger's behalf.
    — Harold Maass, The Week, 23 May 2023
  • The plea agreement says he will be given life with a chance for parole after 15 years.
    — Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 10 July 2024
  • Zhao has separately agreed to pay a $50 million fine as part of his plea deal.
    — Alexander Mallin, ABC News, 21 Nov. 2023
  • Caruso went to jail for a year and was on probation until 1970, when his plea was changed to not guilty and the case was dismissed.
    — Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2023
  • Bundy avoided the death sentence by agreeing to testify against Clark as part of a plea deal.
    — Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 16 Oct. 2023
  • Tribes and water:Their pleas for water were long ignored.
    — The Arizona Republic, 24 Mar. 2024
  • Beside canceling the plea deals, Austin has now reserved for himself the authority to reach agreements with these men, while Escallier retains that power for others held at Gitmo.
    — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 4 Aug. 2024
  • But he was ultimately convicted of lesser charges after accepting a plea deal, ABC 4 Utah reported.
    — Nicole Acosta, Peoplemag, 5 Aug. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'plea.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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