reach for

phrasal verb

reached for; reaching for; reaches for

: to move one's hand in order to get or touch (someone or something)

She reached for the salt and pepper.

He reached into his pocket for a dime.

: to try hard to achieve or succeed at (something)

Success won't come to you, you have to reach for it.

Examples of reach for in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That, along with inflation and rising interest rates, put rents and homeownership out of reach for many Puerto Ricans, said Alonso Ortiz, the founder of El Otro Puerto Rico, a nonprofit organization that tries to slow displacement. —

Patricia Mazzei Erika P. Rodriguez, New York Times, 8 June 2024 Gutierrez reacted by grabbing the inmate’s forearm and reaching for his shoulder. —

Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2024 The 75-year-old Democrat from bike-friendly Portland, Oregon, is introducing a new bill that aims to re-shore domestic bike manufacturing by stealing it back from China while also helping protect electric bikes from high tariffs that could put them out of reach for many Americans. —

Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 6 June 2024 These cooking shortcuts deliver on homemade flavors When a homemade dinner is off the table, reach for these prepared meals that wowed testers of the PEOPLE Food Awards 2024. —

Sonal Dutt, Peoplemag, 5 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for reach for

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reach for.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.