college try

American  

noun

1. Informal. maximum effort for success on behalf of one's group, team, alma mater, etc. (usually preceded by the phrasethe old ).

   We may not make the deadline, but we'll give it the old college try.

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Etymology

Origin of college try

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

college try

But lately, growing numbers of preretirees and retirees are giving it the old college try.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 10, 2026

Cassidy gave the suck-up routine the old college try, but ultimately, the snake did its snake thing.

From Slate ● Jan. 21, 2026

Maybe time had to work its magic to find a place where the baby face ended and the smolder began; they could not exist as one, though he certainly gave it the college try.

From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2025

That said, you can hardly blame Zuckerberg for wanting to give it the old college try.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 3, 2022

Probably he had said to someone to give something the old college try, and that had finished him; that would probably be grounds for expulsion at Harvard.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles