Princeton's WordNet

1. supplication, plea(noun)

   a humble request for help from someone in authority

2. plea(noun)

   (law) a defendant's answer by a factual matter (as distinguished from a demurrer)

3. plea(noun)

   an answer indicating why a suit should be dismissed

Kernerman English Learner's Dictionary

1. plea(noun)pli

   a statement of guilt or innocence in a court of law

   a plea of guilty/not guilty

2. pleapli

   an emotional request

   a plea for the release of the hostages

Wiktionary

1. plea(Noun)

   An appeal, petition, urgent prayer or entreaty.

   a plea for mercy

2. plea(Noun)

   An excuse; an apology.

3. plea(Noun)

   That which is alleged or pleaded, in defense or in justification.

4. plea(Noun)

   That which is alleged by a party in support of his cause.

5. plea(Noun)

   An allegation of fact in a cause, as distinguished from a demurrer.

6. plea(Noun)

   The defendantu2019s answer to the plaintiffu2019s declaration and demand.

7. plea(Noun)

   A cause in court; a lawsuit; as, the Court of Common Pleas. See under Common.

   The Supreme Judicial Court shall have cognizance of pleas real, personal, and mixed. --Laws of Massachusetts.

Webster Dictionary

1. Plea(noun)

   that which is alleged by a party in support of his cause; in a stricter sense, an allegation of fact in a cause, as distinguished from a demurrer; in a still more limited sense, and in modern practice, the defendant's answer to the plaintiff's declaration and demand. That which the plaintiff alleges in his declaration is answered and repelled or justified by the defendant's plea. In chancery practice, a plea is a special answer showing or relying upon one or more things as a cause why the suit should be either dismissed, delayed, or barred. In criminal practice, the plea is the defendant's formal answer to the indictment or information presented against him

2. Plea(noun)

   a cause in court; a lawsuit; as, the Court of Common Pleas. See under Common

3. Plea(noun)

   that which is alleged or pleaded, in defense or in justification; an excuse; an apology

4. Plea(noun)

   an urgent prayer or entreaty

• pleidooiAfrikaans
• يَرُدُّ على تُهْمَهArabic
• пледоарияBulgarian
• declaraçãoPortuguese (BR)
• obhajobaCzech
• die Antwort des AngeklagtenGerman
• påstandDanish
• απάντηση στο κατηγορητήριοGreek
• alegato, declaraciónSpanish
• kaitseväideEstonian
• مدافعه؛ پاسخ دعویFarsi
• oikeudenkäyntiväiteFinnish
• défenseFrench
• טִיעוּןHebrew
• सफाई, दलीलHindi
• obrana,žalbaCroatian
• védekezésHungarian
• pernyataanIndonesian
• svar stefnda við ákæru, málsvörnIcelandic
• richiesta, appelloItalian
• 申し立てJapanese
• 피고의 항변, 답변Korean
• pareiškimas, paaiškinimasLithuanian
• (apsūdzētā) atbilde uz apsūdzībuLatvian
• rayuanMalay
• pleidooiDutch
• påstandNorwegian
• odpowiedź na zarzutPolish
• مدافعه؛ پاسخ دعویPersian
• مدافعه په دعوا كښېPashto
• declaraçãoPortuguese
• pledoarieRomanian
• заявление подсудимогоRussian
• obhajobaSlovak
• zagovorSlovenian
• izjašnjenjeSerbian
• försvar, svaromålSwedish
• คำแก้ต่างThai
• savunma, beyanTurkish
• 抗辯Chinese (Trad.)
• відповідь на обвинуваченняUkrainian
• بيان صفائيUrdu
• lời thú tội/không thú tộiVietnamese
• 抗辩Chinese (Simp.)