Pleas

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /pliːz/

Definitions

1. A heartfelt request directed at someone for assistance often conveys a deep sense of need
2. An emotional or logical appeal made to persuade another to act can reflect personal urgency
3. A request made sincerely to gain help or forgiveness ; a reason or excuse presented to influence a judgment or decision

Etymology: The plural "pleas" belongs to "plea", and the surprise is that a word meaning a heartfelt request for help began life as a legal term. It came into Middle English as "ple" from Old French "plait" or "plaid", and its deeper ancestor is the Medieval Latin "placitum", a decree or judgment. Courts used it for a formal statement made in a lawsuit, which is still the sense behind a "plea" of guilty or not guilty. The Latin word had a gentler sense too. "Placitum" was the neuter past participle of "placere", "to please", so its literal idea was something that pleases or seems good to someone. A decision was what seemed fitting to the authority who made it, and that pleasing judgment gave rise to the courtroom meaning. The move from law to everyday appeal came as a plea became a formal petition, a request put before someone with power to grant it. Over time the emphasis shifted from the legal procedure to the feeling behind the asking, which is why "pleas" now often sounds desperate or sincere.

Synonyms: requests, petitions, appeals, entreaties, invocations