Definition

1. Noun:

   • A strenuous effort; a difficult fight or attempt: "struggle" refers to a great effort made against difficulties or opposition.
   • An open conflict or fight: "struggle" can also mean a physical fight or a prolonged conflict between opposing forces or ideas.
   • A difficult task or challenge: Informally, "struggle" can describe something that is very hard to do.

2. Verb:

   • To make a strenuous effort; to fight or contend against difficulty or opposition: The core meaning involves exerting great physical or mental effort to overcome something.
   • To move with difficulty or effort: "struggle" can describe moving awkwardly or forcing one's way through a tight space.
   • To try hard to achieve something despite challenges: It implies a continuous and difficult attempt to reach a goal.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:

  • The struggle for civil rights changed history.
  • It was a real struggle to wake up this morning.
  • The two boxers were locked in a fierce struggle.

• Verb:

  • She had to struggle to make ends meet.
  • The hiker struggled up the steep path.
  • He struggled with the heavy suitcase.

Advanced Usage

• "to struggle against/with": to fight or contend with a problem, opponent, or feeling.

  • She struggled against the current to reach the shore.
  • Many people struggle with anxiety.

• "to struggle for": to fight or make great efforts to achieve or obtain something.

  • They struggled for freedom and equality.
  • The team is struggling for a place in the finals.

• "to struggle on": to continue trying despite great difficulty.

  • Though exhausted, the explorers struggled on towards the summit.

Variants and Related Words

• Struggler (n): A person who struggles.

  • He was a determined struggler who never gave up.

• Struggling (adj): Having difficulty; not successful financially.

  • A struggling artist.
  • The struggling economy.

Synonyms

• Fight: A more general term for physical or metaphorical conflict.
• Battle: Often implies a major, sustained conflict.
• Strive: Suggests great effort towards a goal, with less emphasis on conflict.
• Grapple: To engage in a close fight or struggle; to try to deal with a problem.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Struggle along: To manage with difficulty, especially in life or work.

  • After the factory closed, the town struggled along for years.

• Struggle through: To complete something with great difficulty.

  • I struggled through the last chapter of the difficult book.

Related Idioms

• An uphill struggle/battle: A very difficult task requiring great effort over time.

  • Rebuilding the company after the scandal was an uphill struggle.

• A power struggle: A situation where people or groups compete for control or influence.

  • The boardroom was consumed by a power struggle.

Noun

1. strenuous effort
   • the struggle to get through the crowd exhausted her
2. an open clash between two opposing groups (or individuals)
   • the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph--Thomas Paine
   • police tried to control the battle between the pro- and anti-abortion mobs
3. an energetic attempt to achieve something
   • getting through the crowd was a real struggle
   • he fought a battle for recognition

Verb

1. be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight
   • the tribesmen fought each other
   • Siblings are always fighting
   • Militant groups are contending for control of the country
2. climb awkwardly, as if by scrambling
3. to exert strenuous effort against opposition
   • he struggled to get free from the rope
4. make a strenuous or labored effort
   • She struggled for years to survive without welfare
   • He fought for breath