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had been toiling
  • past perfect progressive of toil.

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.

He had been toiling at triple-A Albuquerque, blocked in the majors by Russell Martin and the veteran backup Brad Ausmus.

From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2024

Yet for almost two decades, Dyer had been toiling away in London’s theater land.

From New York Times • Nov. 29, 2022

The Tobago-born, U.S.-raised Yale master of fine arts grad had been toiling in television for years to get this sort of chance, and he was not going to allow anyone to pigeonhole him.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 26, 2019

"I had been toiling for 20 years, so I was ready as an artist. Amazon was absolutely ready as a platform to have something that felt different," said Soloway.

From Salon • Oct. 20, 2018

Father had been toiling day and night to repair the leaks that sprouted throughout the house like chicken pox.

From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord