- try
- I(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)v. essay, endeavor, attempt, undertake; test, examine, assay, experiment; refine, purify, afflict, beset; strain, tax; judge, hear. See lawsuit, exertion, use, undertaking.II(Roget's IV) v.1. [To endeavor]Syn. attempt, essay, undertake, exert (oneself), contend, strive, make an effort, risk, have a try, contest, wrangle, labor, work, aspire, propose, seek, try to reach, do what one can, tackle, venture, struggle for, compete for, speculate, make every effort, put oneself out, vie for, aspire to, attack*, make a bid for*, beat one's brains*, bear down*, shoot at*, shoot for*, drive for*, chip away at*, do one's best*, bend over backward*, make a pass at*, go after*, go out of the way*, give a workout*, do all in one's power*, go through fire and water*, buckle down*, lift a finger*, break an arm*, break a blood vessel*, lay oneself out*, lay to*, do oneself justice*, have a go at*, make a go of it*, go all out*, leave no stone unturned*, move heaven and earth*, hump it*, file a strong bid*, go all lengths*, go to market*, knock oneself out*, bunch the hits*, break one's neck*, bust a gut*, take a crack at*, give it a whirl*, fight the good fight*.2. [To test]3. [To conduct a trial]Syn. hear, judge, examine, adjudicate, decide, hear a case, sit in judgment, give a fair hearing.Syn.- try is commonly the simple, direct word for putting forth effort to do something [try to come ] , but specifically it connotes experimentation in testing or proving something [ I'll try your recipe ] ; attempt , somewhat more formal, suggests a setting out to accomplish something but often connotes failure [ he had attempted to take his life ] ; endeavor suggests exertion and determined effort in the face of difficulties [ we shall endeavor to recover your loss ] ; essay connotes a tentative experimenting to test the feasibility of something difficult [ she will not essay the high jump ] ; strive suggests great, earnest exertion to accomplish something [strive to win ] ; struggle suggests a violent striving to overcome obstacles or to free oneself from an impediment [ I struggled to reach the top ]III(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus)In.attempt, *shot, *crack, *whirl, *go, *stab, effort, trial, turn, essay.IIv.1. attempt endeavor, *take a shot at, *take a crack at, *give it a whirl, *give it a go, *make a stab at, make an effort, take a turn, make a bid for, undertake, essay, venture, strive, *knock oneself out, struggle, do one's best, work hard, labor, vie for, *buckle down, *go all out, *give it the old college try.2. test experiment, try out, evaluate, examine, assay, *put to the test, *check out, appraise, prove, sample, taste.3. bring a case to court hear a case, adjudicate, judge, examine, decide.4. strain stress, burden, tax, weary, trouble, sap.IV(Roget's Thesaurus II) I verb 1. To make an attempt to do or make: assay, attempt, endeavor, essay, seek, strive. Idioms: have a go at, have (or make or take) a shot at, have (or take) a whack at, make a stab at, take a crack at. See TRY. 2. To subject to a procedure that ascertains effectiveness, value, proper function, or other quality: assay, check, essay, examine, prove, test, try out. Idioms: bring to the test, make trial of, put to the proof (or test). See INVESTIGATE. II noun 1. A trying to do or make something: attempt, crack, effort, endeavor, essay, go, offer, stab, trial. Informal: shot. Slang: take. Archaic: assay. See TRY. 2. A brief trial: crack, go, stab. Informal: fling, shot, whack, whirl. See TRY.
English dictionary for students. 2013.
