The dynamic plastic deformation of simply supported and clamped circular plates to a central pressure pulse is investigated theoretically. The plate material is assumed to be rigid-perfectly plastic and to obey a yield criterion which retains the transverse shear force as well as bending moments. Various patterns of deformation are obtained for a wide range of parameters which combine plastic bending and shear sliding. The dependence of the final central deflection and shear displacement on the relative shear strength, the load magnitude and the loaded area are discussed for a short duration pressure pulse. The influence of boundary conditions on shear and bending deformation is examined.