strive

[ strahyv ]

/ straɪv /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR strive ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), strove or strived, striv·en [striv-uh n] /ˈstrɪv ən/ or strived, striv·ing.

to exert oneself vigorously; try hard: He strove to make himself understood.

to make strenuous efforts toward any goal: to strive for success.

to contend in opposition, battle, or any conflict; compete.

to struggle vigorously, as in opposition or resistance: to strive against fate.

to rival; vie.

Nearby words

stripper, stript, striptease, stripteaser, stripy, strive, striven, strobe, strobe light, strobe lighting, strobe tuner

Origin of strive

1175–1225; Middle English striven < Old French estriver to quarrel, compete, strive < Germanic; compare obsolete Dutch strijven, German streben to strive

SYNONYMS FOR strive

1 See try.

2 toil.

3 struggle, fight.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR strive ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

striv·er, nounstriv·ing·ly, adverbin·ter·strive, verb (used without object), in·ter·strove, in·ter·striv·en, in·ter·striv·ing.out·strive, verb (used with object), out·strove, out·striv·en, out·striv·ing.

o·ver·strive, verb (used without object), o·ver·strove, o·ver·striv·en, o·ver·striv·ing.re·strive, verb (used without object), re·strove, re·striv·en, re·striv·ing.un·striv·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for striving

But they are striving “to shine bright like a diamond” and be happy, and we love them for it.
‘Girlhood’: Coming of Age in France’s Projects|Molly Hannon|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
People with eating disorders can become competitive and perfectionistic, striving to be the “thinnest” in any group of sufferers.
Should Pro-Anorexia Sites Be Criminalized?|Carrie Arnold|August 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Striving to be evocatively mysterious, Eyrie is in the end merely mystifying.
Tim Winton's Beautiful, Baffling 'Eyrie'|Wendy Smith|August 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Braff is striving to convey a poignant blend of pathos and humor here, but his sort of striving is a form of cheating.
Zach Braff’s Irritating Sense of Entitlement|Andrew Romano|July 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST

In its place came something which, striving to fuse Urdu and Telugu, seemed to devalue both.
India’s Newest State Telangana Is Bosnia Redux|Kranti Rai|March 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I was a poor boy, and I strove for learning, strove hard, and found it worth the striving.
Lewis Rand|Mary Johnston
I remained silent, striving vainly to frame some innocent question which should solve for me the problem of who and what she was.
My Lady of the North|Randall Parrish
The striving to rise above all individualism was another ideal which a later period revived.
The Evolution of Love|Emil Lucka
He went along by her side walking heavily, striving to conceal his hands.
The Best Short Stories of 1921 and the Yearbook of the American Short Story|Various
Mrs. Bindle's lips tightened, as if she were striving to restrain the angry words that were eager to leap out.
Mrs. Bindle|Hebert Jenkins

British Dictionary definitions for striving

strive

/ (straɪv) /

verb strives, striving, strove or striven (ˈstrɪvən)

(may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to make a great and tenacious effortto strive to get promotion

(intr) to fight; contend

Derived Forms

striver, noun

Word Origin for strive

C13: from Old French estriver, of Germanic origin; related to Middle High German streben to strive, Old Norse strītha to fight

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