strenuous
Americanadjective
-
characterized by vigorous exertion, as action, efforts, life, etc..
a strenuous afternoon of hunting.
-
demanding or requiring vigorous exertion; laborious.
To think deeply is a strenuous task.
- Antonyms:
- easy
-
vigorous, energetic, or zealously active.
a strenuous person; a strenuous intellect.
- Synonyms:
- forceful
adjective
-
requiring or involving the use of great energy or effort
-
characterized by great activity, effort, or endeavour
Synonym Usage
See active.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of strenuous
1590–1600; < Latin strēnuus; see -ous
Explanation
Something strenuous requires all your effort and strength, like a hard workout at the gym or carrying a backpack full of heavy books. Strenuous can also describe something done with lots of energy or force. If your boss asks you to do a strenuous task like carry a couch up a flight of stairs by yourself, and you refuse by jumping up and down in protest, you have a strenuous objection to her request. To remember how to spell it, remember that something strenuous requires the strength of two of you! That's why there are two u's in strenUoUs.
Vocabulary lists containing strenuous
List 6
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The Phantom Tollbooth
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And Then There Were None
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Strenuous efforts" will be made to ensure these are voluntary redundancies, says Durham, adding that it "remains a world-leading university".
From BBC • Feb. 8, 2025
Strenuous efforts were followed by games in which he was lethargic, leading to skepticism of whether his body could withstand round after round of physical postseason basketball.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 27, 2023
Strenuous efforts should be made to clear Blue Line tracks from Rosslyn to the Pentagon, and Yellow Line tracks from the Pentagon to L’Enfant Plaza.
From Washington Post • Feb. 5, 2016
Strenuous monetary stimulus by the Fed has pulled our economy out of the hole it was in, and now it looks like the economic growth will be sustainable.
From New York Times • Jan. 10, 2015
Strenuous efforts were made to rescue the men, and mainly through the exertions of one Tom Holford they were brought to the surface much exhausted, but otherwise uninjured, at 9.15 p.m. on the 21st.
From Norfolk Annals A Chronological Record of Remarkable Events in the Nineteeth Century, Vol. 2 by Mackie, Charles
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
