struggle

 
Pronunciation: /ˈstrʌg(ə)l/

verb

[no object]
  • make forceful or violent efforts to get free of restraint or constriction: before she could struggle, he lifted her up [with infinitive]: he struggled to break free
  • engage in conflict: politicians continued to struggle over familiar issues
  • strive to achieve or attain something in the face of difficulty or resistance: new authors are struggling in the present climate many families on income support have to struggle to make ends meet (as adjective struggling) a struggling team
  • (struggle with) have difficulty handling or coping with: passengers struggle with bags and briefcases
  • [no object, with adverbial of direction] make one’s way with difficulty: it took us all day to struggle back to our bivouac

noun

  • a forceful or violent effort to get free of restraint or resist attack: there were signs of a struggle and there was a lot of blood around
  • a conflict or contest: a power struggle for the leadership
  • a determined effort under difficulties: with a struggle, she pulled the pram up the slope the centre is the result of the scientists' struggle to realize their dream
  • a very difficult task: it was a struggle to make herself understood

Phrases

the struggle for existence (or life)

the competition between organisms, especially as an element in natural selection, or between people seeking a livelihood: every adaptation had to offer an advantage to the organism in the struggle for existence

Derivatives

struggler

noun

Origin:

late Middle English: frequentative, perhaps of imitative origin. The noun dates from the late 17th century