attempted

adjective at·tempt·ed \ ə-ˈtem(p)-təd \

|Updated on: 13 Jun 2018

Definition of attempted

: having been tried without success

an attempted suicide

an attempted takeover

; especially, law : characterized by an intent to commit and effort taken to commit a specified crime that fails or is prevented

an attempted robbery

was charged with attempted murder

Recent Examples of attempted from the Web

That case involved the attempted abduction of a 16-year-old girl from her home around 2 a.m. on Sept. 11, 1975.

— sam stanton, sacbee, "He was a teen chasing a prowler in 1977. He ended up being shot by the East Area Rapist," 8 June 2018
Instead, Visconti constructed a fictional story, using real people and locations, about the attempted rise and bitter fall of ’Ntoni Valastra and his family.

— New York Times, "How Luchino Visconti Made History Sing," 7 June 2018
The second season pushes even more boundaries, depicting an attempted school shooting as well as a violent rape scene.

— rebecca farley, refinery29.com, "Netflix CEO Has Strong Words For 13 Reasons Why Haters," 7 June 2018
The progress of the longstanding attempted takeover bid could well impact how that and many other things play out.

— SI.com, "Newcastle Hold 'Positive' Talks With Rafa Benitez Following Uncertainty Over His Future," 22 May 2018
More than 100 former Turkish military officers have been given life sentences for their involvement in an attempted 2016 coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the BBC reports.

— eli meixler, Time, "Turkey Sentences 104 People to Life in Prison Over the 2016 Coup Attempt," 22 May 2018
Through Friday, McCann has thrown out one of nine attempted base stealers while Max Stassi is 0-for-2.

— david barron, Houston Chronicle, "Astros' Gerrit Cole aims to cut down on stolen bases against him," 28 Apr. 2018
The attempted execution followed months of legal battles surrounding the accessibility of Hamm's veins, which are riddled with damage from drug use and lymphatic cancer treatment.

— hanna krueger, NOLA.com, "Alabama will not try to kill inmate again following botched execution: report," 28 Mar. 2018
The leaders of the Government Hill Alliance Neighborhood Association have withstood an attempted takeover — so far — by residents who say the neighborhood isn’t doing enough to control the new development sweeping through San Antonio’s urban core.

— richard webner, San Antonio Express-News, "Local officials backing Government Hill leaders after attempted coup," 4 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'attempted.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of attempted

circa 1513

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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Law Dictionary

attempted

adjective at·tempt·ed

legal Definition of attempted

: characterized by an intent to commit and effort taken to commit a specified crime that fails or is prevented

attempted forgery

Learn More about attempted

Nglish: Translation of attempted for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of attempted for Arabic speakers

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attempted

Definition of attempted

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attempted

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