attempt
to make an effort at; try; undertake; seek: to attempt an impossible task; to attempt to walk six miles.
Archaic. to attack; move against in a hostile manner: to attempt a person's life.
Archaic. to tempt.
an effort made to accomplish something: He made an attempt to swim across the lake.
an attack or assault: an attempt upon the leader's life.
Origin of attempt
1synonym study For attempt
Other words for attempt
Other words from attempt
- at·tempt·a·bil·i·ty, noun
- at·tempt·a·ble, adjective
- at·tempt·er, noun
- qua·si-at·tempt, verb
- re·at·tempt, verb (used with object)
- un·at·tempt·a·ble, adjective
- un·at·tempt·ed, adjective
- un·at·tempt·ing, adjective
- well-at·tempt·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use attempt in a sentence
After multiple attempts to reach city officials and urge them not to delete the records we sought, Ivey said she was working on the request.
North County Report: Why We’re Suing Solana Beach | Kayla Jimenez | August 19, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoAfter VOSD’s story published, the city attorney’s office went back through its records and found past discussions about an attempt to repeal that section of the municipal code.
SDPD Says it Will Stop Enforcing Seditious Language Law | Kate Nucci | August 17, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoCounty Supervisor Kristin Gaspar is running against Ikhrata and SANDAG in general, and their attempts to deprioritize highway spending in favor of transit specifically.
Politics Report: Who Will Get the Midway Rose? | Scott Lewis and Andrew Keatts | August 15, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoLikewise, since every person’s ballot has a unique bar code, the system catches any attempt to vote twice by requesting additional ballots.
GOP Chair Who Called Mail Voting ‘Fraught With Danger’ Voted by Mail 22 Straight Times | Andrew Keatts | August 10, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoAnother hour into his attempt to get a test, Price realized that he just couldn’t wait any longer.
Which Cities Have The Biggest Racial Gaps In COVID-19 Testing Access? | Soo Rin Kim | July 22, 2020 | FiveThirtyEight
It was the year that Kim Kardashian attempted to break the Internet with hers.
Year of the Butt: How the Booty Changed the World in 2014 | Kevin Fallon | December 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe risk to his life was great enough that he had to flee Munich when Hitler attempted to seize power in November 1923.
The Catholic Philosopher Who Took on Hitler | John Henry Crosby | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAfter he allegedly unloaded on the cops, Brinsley attempted to make a getaway to a nearby subway.
Alleged Cop Killer Ismaaiyl Brinsley Had a Death Wish | M.L. Nestel | December 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAs a cafe in Sydney, Australia came under siege by a hostage-taking gunman on Monday, those nearby attempted to flee the area.
In Defense of Uber’s Awful Sydney Surge Pricing | Olivia Nuzzi | December 16, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThat statistic is based on a survey that includes attempted forced kissing as sexual assault.
Some of the alarm returned, however, when the creature attempted to climb up by his own ladder.
The Giant of the North | R.M. BallantyneIt was one day when a student from the Stuttgardt conservatory attempted to play the Sonata Appassionata.
Music-Study in Germany | Amy FayOne little girl attempted to smell at the trees in a drawing and pretended to feed some pictorial dogs.
Children's Ways | James SullyJoseph, with his liberal ideas, had attempted to free the people from clerical thraldom.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-PattisonNone the less it is the most nearly true of all the broad generalizations that can be attempted in regard to mankind.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice | Stephen Leacock
British Dictionary definitions for attempt
/ (əˈtɛmpt) /
to make an effort (to do something) or to achieve (something); try
to try to surmount (an obstacle)
to try to climb: they will attempt the north wall of the Eiger
archaic to attack
archaic to tempt
an endeavour to achieve something; effort
a result of an attempt or endeavour
an attack, esp with the intention to kill: an attempt on his life
Origin of attempt
1usage For attempt
Derived forms of attempt
- attemptable, adjective
- attempter, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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