I plead the Fifth
3 synonyms for I plead the Fifth, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Phrase — A statement made by a witness in the United States refusing to answer a question because the answer might help prove them guilty of a crime.
Synonyms
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
take the Fifth
invoke the Fifth Amendment
decline to answer
How to use I plead the Fifth
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
plead the Fifth
take the Fifth
invoke the Fifth
Legal in origin, but far more often heard as a light-hearted refusal in everyday conversation.
Etymology
From the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which protects a person from being forced to give evidence against themselves.
Full origin of I plead the Fifth →Frequently asked questions
What does pleading the Fifth actually mean?
It means using the Fifth Amendment right not to give evidence that could incriminate you. The witness is not answering the question at all, rather than denying anything.
Does pleading the Fifth mean you are guilty?
No. In a criminal trial the jury may not treat silence as evidence of guilt, and innocent people invoke it to avoid being trapped by misleading questions. In civil cases the rules are looser and a court may draw an adverse inference.
Can you plead the Fifth outside the United States?
The phrase itself is purely American, but most legal systems have some equivalent protection against self-incrimination. In England and Wales, for instance, a court may in some circumstances draw conclusions from a defendant's silence.
