Thursday, January 16, 2014

please, pleas

Please or please means to satisfy, or to indulge the whims or tastes of--
His mother is somewhat fussy, but this should please her.
He tries hard to please them, but they are never satisfied.
"If it please the court..."

Please is also used as an adverb, of sorts ( describes an action )--
Would you please stop that!
May we have a drink, please?

Pleas or pleas ( rhymes with please ) is the plural ( more than one ) of "plea", meaning an earnest request or supplication--
The man's pleas for help went unheeded.
The mother's pleas on behalf of her children caught the attention of a good Samaritan.

Pleas is also the plural of "plea",  meaning an answer to a criminal charge, or a legal request or petition--
If we can get the defendants to enter guilty pleas, their sentences may be shorter.
They will be tried individually, and will need to enter separate pleas.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"His repeated pleas of "please help us" finally brought a rescuer."

Note--"please" may be a verb, with all of the usual verb forms--
I please; you please; he pleases. It pleased. We are pleased. It is pleasing.
The adjective ( describes something ) form of "please" is "pleasant"--
What a pleasant surprise!
Note # 2--"plea" is a noun ( thing or idea ). The verb meaning to to answer a criminal charge, or to make a request, is "plead"--
I plead; you plead; he pleads; everyone is pleading. Tomorrow we will plead.
The past tense of "plead", meaning an earnest supplication, is "pleaded"--
She pleaded with him to stop drinking, but he ignored her.
The past tense of "plead", meaning to answer a criminal charge, is "pled"--
He pled guilty to a charge of possession, and will probably be sentenced to probation.

No comments:

Post a Comment