reach for

verb

reached for; reaching for; reaches for

1

: 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.

2

: 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

An attorney who previously represented Ford could not immediately be reached for comment. —CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026

The actress reached for the JW Pei Lucia Top-Handle bag, according to the brand, which, as luck would have it, is currently available on Amazon for less than $100. —Averi Baudler, PEOPLE, 20 Apr. 2026

Lawlor’s book contains chapters devoted to politics, but her inclination to reach for examples of the reasonable and unreasonable that any reader will intuitively share serves her less well here. —Nikhil Krishnan, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026

Big, tannic cabernets and heady merlots — the bottles people often instinctively reach for — tend to overwhelm cheese, explains Roper. —Anna Lee Iijima, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2026

Rhymes for reach for

• abhor
• abor
• adore
• afore
• ardour
• ashore
• backdoor
• before
• bookstore
• candour
• centaur
• claymore