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Definition of pleas - 2 dictionary results

plea

  [plee]
Use pleas in a Sentence
–noun
1. an appeal or entreaty: a plea for mercy.
2. something that is alleged, urged, or pleaded in defense or justification.
3. an excuse; pretext: He begged off on the plea that his car wasn't working.
4. Law.
a. an allegation made by, or on behalf of, a party to a legal suit, in support of his or her claim or defense.
b. a defendant's answer to a legal declaration or charge.
c. (in courts of equity) a plea that admits the truth of the declaration, but alleges special or new matter in avoidance.
d. Obsolete. a suit or action.
—Idiom
5. cop a plea, Slang. cop 1 (def. 5b).
Origin:
1175–1225; ME ple, earlier plaid < OF < early ML placitum law-court, suit, decision, decree, L: opinion (lit., that which is pleasing or agreeable), n. use of neut. of ptp. of placēre to please

Synonyms:
1. request, petition, supplication, solicitation, suit. 3. justification.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To pleas
plea   (plē)   
n.  
  1. An earnest request; an appeal: spoke out in a plea for greater tolerance.
  2. An excuse; a pretext: "necessity,/The Tyrant's plea" (John Milton).
  3. Law
    1. An allegation offered in pleading a case.
    2. A defendant's answer to the declaration made by the plaintiff in a civil action.
    3. The answer of the accused to a criminal charge or indictment: entered a plea of not guilty.
    4. A special answer depending on or demonstrating one or more reasons why a suit should be delayed, dismissed, or barred in equity law.
    5. An action or suit.

[Middle English plai, lawsuit, from Old French plai, plaid, from Late Latin placitum, decree, from Latin, from neuter past participle of placēre, to please; see plāk-1 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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