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struggle definition

strug·gle (strug′əl)

intransitive verb struggled -·gled, struggling -·gling

  1. to contend or fight violently with an opponent
  2. to make great efforts or attempts; strive; labor
  3. to make one's way with difficulty to struggle through a thicket

Etymology: ME strogelen < ?

transitive verb

  1. to bring, put, do, etc. by struggling
  2. to make (one's way) with difficulty

noun

  1. great effort or a series of efforts; violent exertion
  2. conflict; strife; contention

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

struggle Synonyms

struggle

n.

  1. A fight

    conflict, contest, strife; see fight 1. See syn. study at fight.

  2. Effort

    exertion, strain, travail; see effort 1, 2.


struggle

v.

strive, grapple, cope, try; see fight 1. See syn. study at try.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

struggle Usage Examples

Infinitive complement

  • survive: Such a man would struggle to survive in today's world.

Preposition: against

  • imperialism: Coalition with the bourgeoisie leads to the proletariat's abnegating the revolutionary struggle against imperialism.

Preposition: for

  • liberation: REMEMBERING AND CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF ROSE STRONG During our struggle for liberation, we have lost many comrades along the way.

Adjective modifier

  • uphill: Unions ' uphill struggle This evidence confirms the uphill struggle which unions face in Britain today.

Noun used with modifier

  • liberation: The government of East Timor is predominantly made up of veterans of the country's national liberation struggle.
struggle usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

struggle quotes

The fact that the adult American Negro female emerges a formidable character is often met with amazement, distaste and even belligerence. It is seldom accepted as an inevitable outcome of the struggle won by survivors, and deserves respect if not enthusiastic acceptance.

-Angelou, Maya originally MayaJohnson

And we are here as on a darkling plain Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight, Where ignorant armies clash by night.

-Arnold, Matthew

   When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.

-Burke, Edmund

struggle quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"struggle." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/struggle>

APA Style

struggle. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/struggle

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