strain

Strain is defined as to exert or stretch to the maximum or to injure by too much exertion.

(verb)

  1. An example of strain is for a spectator to stretch over his seat to see a concert.
  2. An example of strain is for a football player to pull a muscle from playing too roughly.

The definition of a strain is a bodily injury due to overexertion or an excessive demand on resources.

(noun)

  1. An example of strain is a pulled muscle.
  2. An example of strain is reading a book in the dark, causing pressure on the eyes.

YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2013 by LoveToKnow Corp.

See strain in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb

  1. to draw or stretch tight
  2. to exert, use, or tax to the utmost: to strain every nerve
  3. to overtax; injure by overexertion; wrench: to strain a muscle
  4. to injure or weaken by force, pressure, etc.: the wind strained the roof
  5. to stretch or force beyond the normal, customary, or legitimate limits: to strain a rule to one's own advantage
  6. to change the form or size of, by applying external force
    1. to pass through a screen, sieve, filter, etc.; filter
    2. to remove or free by filtration, etc.
  7. to hug or embrace: now only in
  8. Obsolete to force; constrain

Origin: ME streinen < OFr estraindre, to strain, wring hard < L stringere, to draw tight: see strict

intransitive verb

  1. to make violent or continual efforts; strive hard
  2. to be or become strained
  3. to be subjected to great stress or pressure
  4. to pull or push with force
  5. to filter, ooze, or trickle
  6. Origin: from a misunderstanding of “strain at a gnat” (Matt. 23:24)

    to hesitate or be unwilling; balk (at)

noun

  1. a straining or being strained
  2. great effort, exertion, or tension
  3. an injury to a part of the body as a result of great effort or overexertion: muscle strain
    1. change in form or size, or both, resulting from stress or force
    2. stress or force
  4. a great or excessive demand on one's emotions, resources, etc.: a strain on the imagination

noun

  1. Obsolete
    1. a begetting
    2. offspring
  2. ancestry; lineage; descent
  3. the descendants of a common ancestor; race; stock; line; breed; variety
  4. an inherited or natural characteristic or tendency
  5. a trace; streak
  6. the manner, style, or tone of a speech, book, action, etc.: to write in an angry strain
  7. a passage of music; tune; air
  8. a passage of poetry, esp. of a lyric sort
  9. a flight or outburst of eloquence, profanity, etc.
  10. Taxonomy, Genetics a line of individuals of a certain species or race, differentiated from the main group by certain qualities, often, specif., superior qualities resulting from artificial breeding

Origin: ME stren < OE streon, gain, procreation, stock, race < base strynan, streonan, to produce: for IE base see strew

See strain in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb strained, strain·ing, strains
verb, transitive
  1. To pull, draw, or stretch tight: strained the sheets over the bed.
  2. To exert or tax to the utmost: straining our ears to hear.
  3. To injure or impair by overuse or overexertion; wrench: strain a muscle.
  4. To stretch or force beyond the proper or legitimate limit: strain a point.
  5. Physics To alter (the relations between the parts of a structure or shape) by applying an external force; deform.
  6. a. To pass (gravy, for example) through a filtering agent such as a strainer.
    b. To draw off or remove by filtration: strained the pulp from the juice.
  7. To embrace or clasp tightly; hug.
verb, intransitive
  1. To make violent or steady efforts; strive hard: straining to reach the finish line.
  2. To be or become wrenched or twisted.
  3. To be subjected to great stress.
  4. To pull forcibly or violently: The dog strained at its leash.
  5. To stretch or exert one's muscles or nerves to the utmost.
  6. To filter, trickle, or ooze.
  7. To be extremely hesitant; balk: a mule that strained at the lead.
noun
  1. a. The act of straining.
    b. The state of being strained.
  2. a. Extreme or laborious effort, exertion, or work.
    b. A great or excessive pressure, demand, or stress on one's body, mind, or resources: the strain of managing both a family and a career.
  3. A wrench, twist, or other physical injury resulting from excessive tension, effort, or use.
  4. Physics A deformation produced by stress.
  5. An exceptional degree or pitch: a strain of zealous idealism.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English streinen

Origin: , from Old French estreindre, estrein-, to bind tightly

Origin: , from Latin stringere; see streig- in Indo-European roots

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noun
  1. The collective descendants of a common ancestor; a race, stock, line, or breed.
  2. Any of the various lines of ancestry united in an individual or a family; ancestry or lineage.
  3. Biology A group of organisms of the same species, having distinctive characteristics but not usually considered a separate breed or variety: a superior strain of wheat; a smooth strain of bacteria.
  4. An artificial variety of a domestic animal or cultivated plant.
  5. A kind or sort: imaginings of a morbid strain.
  6. a. An inborn or inherited tendency or character.
    b. An inherent quality; a streak. See Synonyms at streak.
  7. a. The tone, tenor, or substance of a verbal utterance or of a particular action or behavior: spoke in a passionate strain.
    b. A prevailing quality, as of attitude or behavior.
  8. Music A passage of expression; a tune or an air. Often use in the plural: melodic strains of the violin.
  9. a. A passage of poetic and especially lyrical expression.
    b. An outburst or a flow of eloquent or impassioned language.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English strene

Origin: , from Old English strēon, something gained, progeny; see ster-2 in Indo-European roots

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