■ verb ( past and past participle ~ed or US & dialect pled )
1》 make an emotional appeal.
2》 present and argue for (a position), especially in court or in another public context.
↘ Law address a court as an advocate on behalf of a party.
3》 Law state formally in court whether one is guilty or not guilty of the offence with which one is charged.
↘invoke (a reason or a point of law) as an accusation or defence: she ~ed self-defence.
↘offer or present as an excuse for doing or not doing something.
Derivatives
~able adjective ( Law ).
~er noun
~ing noun & adjective
~ingly adverb
Origin
ME (in the sense 'to wrangle'): from OFr. plaidier 'go to law', from plaid (see plea ).
Usage
In a law court a person can ~ guilty or ~ not guilty . The phrase ~ innocent is not a technical legal term, although it is commonly found in general use.