Synonyms of attempts

attempts 1 of 2

noun

plural of attempt

1

as in tries

an effort to do or accomplish something

it took several attempts before we made good ice cream with an old-fashioned hand-cranked ice cream freezer

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tries
• goes
• stabs
• endeavors
• shots
• bids
• offers
• trials
• passes
• essays
• flings
• cracks
• assays
• whacks
• struggles
• bashes
• whirls
• strivings
• undertakings
• throes
• trial and errors

2

as in attacks

the act or action of setting upon with force or violence

several attempts on the life of the country's chief drug enforcement official

Synonyms & Similar Words

• attacks
• assaults
• raids
• offensives
• offenses
• strikes
• onslaughts
• aggressions
• rushes
• bombardments
• incursions
• blitzes
• invasions
• charges
• onsets
• counterattacks
• blitzkriegs
• barrages
• coups de main
• ambushes
• forays
• bombings
• descents
• breakthroughs
• sorties
• sieges
• ambuscades
• sallies
• counteroffensives
• counterstrikes
• air raids
• ravages
• sacks
• envelopments
• volleys
• counteraggressions
• salvos
• counterassaults
• storms
• pillages
• cannonades
• fusillades
• hails
• whammies

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• defenses
• shields
• guards
• oppositions
• resistances
• securities
• defensives
• protections
• shelters

attempts

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of attempt

as in strives

to make an effort to do

after attempting—and failing—to start the lawn mower on my own, I finally succeeded with a neighbor's help

don't even attempt walking on your broken foot

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tries
• strives
• seeks
• endeavors
• essays
• hopes
• assays
• shoots at
• struggles
• has a go at
• aims
• troubles
• tries one's hand (at)
• works
• undertakes
• toils
• fights
• aspires
• takes up
• assumes
• strains

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• drops
• gives up
• quits

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of attempts

Noun

Webb and Payton will lament converting only 5-of-14 attempts on third down, but the Broncos generally appeared in sync operationally. — Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026

Mangione’s lawyers previously fended off the government’s attempts to seek the death penalty. — ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026

Outside the Jurassic universe, there haven't been many successful attempts to reinvent the dinosaur wheel, so to speak. — Megan McCluskey, Time, 14 Aug. 2026

Belal Muhammad went the full fifteen with Garry in November and failed on all seven takedown attempts, out of the same camp as the champion. — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026

Arike Ogunbowale scored 21 with season highs in free throws and attempts, going 13 of 14, and Alanna Smith had 13 points and 11 rebounds. — CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026

Alston couldn’t be reached, despite attempts by phone and email. — Scott Travis, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026

Multiple attempts by Star reporters to contact McGee Thursday afternoon were unsuccessful. — Ilana Arougheti updated August 7, Kansas City Star, 7 Aug. 2026

In 2024, after around a dozen attempts, voters approved a $20 million bond to build a new K-8 school in Salmon. — Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 7 Aug. 2026

Verb

The model instead attempts to extract the task’s objects, sequence, important contact events, and desired end state. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 15 Aug. 2026

The calls for supernatural aid often consisted of individuals’ attempts to protect themselves and strike back against slave owners under the extreme inequities and traumas of the plantations. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026

The Indiana transfer finished last season 22-for-26 on field goal attempts, with a long of 50 yards and a streak of 12 straight makes, setting a new UConn school record. — Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 13 Aug. 2026

Phone and email attempts to reach a Tlaib spokesperson in recent days were unsuccessful. — Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026

Is that why Mitchell attempts to copy Spielberg’s themes and style to this degree? — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2026

The comedy of errors that follows as Ina attempts to solve the nation’s problems, from traffic congestion to energy crisis, doubles as a critique of the despotic regime and the tumult of living in such hellish times. — Lé Baltar, IndieWire, 13 Aug. 2026

The elder, Alamagan, attempts to resolve the conflict through customary law and religious counsel, but the absence of truth fractures the community. — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 10 Aug. 2026

A little further south on Amsterdam is the pharmacy where Owen goes into the bathroom and unsuccessfully attempts to turn rubber gloves into a condom. — Alex Jhamb Burns, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Aug. 2026