struggle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
struggles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
struggled,
past participle, past
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struggling
present participle
-
to contend with an adversary or opposing force.
-
to contend resolutely with a task, problem, etc.; strive.
to struggle for existence.
-
to advance with violent effort.
to struggle through the snow.
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(of athletes and competitors) to be coping with inability to perform well or to win; contend with difficulty.
After struggling for the whole month of June, he suddenly caught fire and raised his batting average 30 points.
verb (used with object)
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struggles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
struggled,
past participle, past
-
struggling
present participle
-
to bring, put, etc., by struggling.
She struggled the heavy box into a corner.
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to make (one's way) with violent effort.
verb
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(intr; usually foll by for or against; may take an infinitive) to exert strength, energy, and force; work or strive
to struggle to obtain freedom
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(intr) to move about strenuously so as to escape from something confining
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(intr) to contend, battle, or fight
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(intr) to go or progress with difficulty
noun
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a laboured or strenuous exertion or effort
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a fight or battle
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the act of struggling
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the radical and armed opposition to apartheid, especially by the military wings of the ANC and the PAC
Usage
What are other ways to say struggle?
A struggle is a war, fight, conflict, or contest of any kind. How does struggle compare to brush and clash? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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strugglesimple
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strugglessimple
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have struggledperfect
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has struggledperfect
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am strugglingprogressive
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are strugglingprogressive
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is strugglingprogressive
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have been strugglingperfect progressive
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has been strugglingperfect progressive
Past
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struggledsimple
-
had struggledperfect
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was strugglingprogressive
-
were strugglingprogressive
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had been strugglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of struggle
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English struglen, stroglen, frequentative verb ( see -le) formed on a base of obscure origin
Explanation
Something that can only be accomplished with great effort is said to be a struggle. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a leader in the Civil Rights struggle. Alice Paul was a leader in the struggle for a woman's right to vote. The verb form of struggle can be used for physical or mental effort. A police officer might struggle trying to detain a criminal or a student may struggle with a difficult algebra problem. If you scramble and climb awkwardly up something, you can also use the verb struggle to describe the action: "They struggled up the icy hill over and over again, so they could keep sledding."
Vocabulary lists containing struggle
Mother's Day Words: What Mothers Do
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Beowulf vocabulary
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myPerspectives 7.1
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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.
See Examples For:
In June, his company invited founders, investors and lawyers to gather at the Pearl Box, a Manhattan cocktail bar, to swap stories on startup failures and the struggle to compete with AI giants.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
"While we honor his devotion, human life is precious and must be preserved to serve the long-term struggle for Tibet," Tsering said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
I still think about it and watch it over and over again because it beautifully articulates something I’ve always believed but struggle to find the words to explain.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
Though he expressed concern that future administrations might struggle to sustain such funding, given the significant jump in the military's annual salary bill.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
It seems a sad way to end our struggle.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
While Frick struggles with what she calls a “culture of takedown,” she says she is buoyed by the individual stories she hears from readers who have been moved by Dial’s books.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
This followed interviews in which Jenner had spoken about her struggles with constantly being photographed in public.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2026
They wanted to grapple as well with John’s struggles, such as his unresolved grief over losing his father at an early age and his awareness of his own mortality.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
SpaceX thus rents out its machines to its own competitors as its AI model Grok struggles to gain commercial traction against OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude.
From Barron's ● Aug. 4, 2026
Zara struggles under the weight of a box labeled “CWP.”
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Other migrants took to sleeping on the streets of residential areas away from the centre of Ceuta as the territory's reception facilities struggled to cope.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Midfielder Nico Gonzalez joined City from Porto for £50m last January but has struggled to hold down a regular first-team place.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
While Baker had meticulously preserved the vintage collectibles in his family’s historic home, he often struggled to afford structural repairs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
This past offseason, he struggled to find a job, ultimately landing in February with the Giants on a one-year, $12 million contract.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
As he struggled to his feet, he glanced over his shoulder -and saw to his horror that Wolf had trotted back to look for him.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
The volunteer-run service provides food supplies and support to families struggling to make ends meet from its West Kingsdown and Swanley sites.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
In Germany’s industrial heartlands, companies are cutting production and struggling to ship goods along the Rhine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Although most of the crowds of migrants have returned across the border to Morocco, authorities are struggling to find shelter for Moroccan children remaining in the Spanish enclave, who cannot be summarily deported.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Now, one prominent economist is warning that the specific methods used by the Treasury and Federal Reserve to help prop up the struggling yen send a troubling message about the status of the greenback.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
As he watched the dancing flames he felt something struggling to break free inside him.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
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.
