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.
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to contend resolutely with a task, problem, etc.; strive.
to struggle for existence.
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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
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had struggledperfect
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was strugglingprogressive
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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:
But leisure stocks and home builders might struggle.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
I struggle with transitions, and Monday is the day that wrenches me most abruptly from one mode into another: weekend to workweek, spaciousness to schedules, vague possibility to the tyranny of the calendar.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
According to White, working families on low incomes not only struggle to pay their bills, but miss out on schemes such as free school meals and subsidised holiday clubs.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Back in Susanville, it’s been a struggle to get any business to return calls.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
But even in such an epic struggle, small details and seemingly ordinary people play pivotal roles, shoving events in one direction or another.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Taken together, the list of woes hardens the image of a chronically broke city whose administration often struggles to reliably provide services for its almost four million people.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
The backlash has included many other athletes from a range of sports posting videos of themselves competing or training, and describing the frustrations and struggles they have faced throughout their careers.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Some of the companies still talking about inflation, however, point to deeper consumer struggles.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 13, 2026
Meanwhile, as he struggles with a crushing financial problem he did not create, he’s aware that millions are being spent on homelessness without significant progress.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026
Mami’s eye falls on me, and her face struggles for composure.
From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez
Berlin's former mayor Klaus Wowereit once famously labelled Berlin "poor but sexy" -- but since then many of its residents have at times struggled to stay in love with the city.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Archaeologists had struggled for decades to explain why so many young people were buried there over such a short period.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026
Novo has struggled to keep pace with Lilly, a nimble competitor that innovated with the way it sold GLP-1 medications like Zepbound.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
This could lead a "worst-case scenario" where people struggled to access energy to run heating, and water and sewage systems stopped working.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
As the Second Grinnell Expedition struggled toward its third year, Commander Kane finally realized they’d never survive another Arctic winter.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Parts of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut were hit by flash flooding leading to water rescues, stranded motorists and half-marathon runners struggling through waist-deep flood waters.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Sannerstedt and Freden argue the Sweden Democrats had failed to broaden their appeal in other policy areas and were now struggling to remain relevant.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
We have agitated for paid parental leave, universal childcare, better public schools, child allowances, and other help for struggling parents.
From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026
An international shortage of interceptors for Patriot missile systems left Kyiv struggling to down incoming barrages of Russian ballistic missiles and promoted worries about attacks on energy infrastructure before winter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
Many wandering souls were eager to meet their destiny, which was most assuredly better than their scrounging, struggling existence in this world.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
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.
