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
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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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of attempts
Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 31 Mar. 2026
The 6-foot-10 big man made his first six field-goal attempts and scored 11 points in his first eight minutes of floor time.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 31 Mar. 2026
The color represents any and all attempts to impose unnecessary order on the world by both real and self-appointed authority figures.
—Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 30 Mar. 2026
The Giants played the rest of that game without a kicker, with punter Jamie Gillan missing an extra point after their first touchdown and the Giants failing on two-point attempts after their next two.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 30 Mar. 2026
The first-stage booster that had been tapped during the original attempts was discarded for a new booster.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 30 Mar. 2026
Players receive four attempts per hour and can win a maximum of one BOGO entrée or double protein during the campaign while competing for the grand prize of free burritos for a year.
—Gabe Hauari, USA Today, 30 Mar. 2026
UConn made four of its last five 3-point attempts to win the game.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 30 Mar. 2026
Within two minutes of entering the game, Dugalić had two shot attempts in the restricted area.
—Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2026
Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 31 Mar. 2026
In fact, Sunday marked two straight games — both losses — with less than 10 field goal attempts.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
But for ordinary Jews in France, attempts to reclaim their homes and furnishings were key to rebuilding their lives.
—Shannon Fogg, The Conversation, 31 Mar. 2026
Indeed, attempts to muffle criticism have backfired, some observers believe.
—Eyal Press, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Kerr’s system of sustained excellence has captured the notice, admiration, and even attempts at emulation in business and politics.
—John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
Then, while Al-Hashimi attempts to revolutionize the department's technology, Javadi sizes up the competition.
—Billie Melissa, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026
While Willis, an Atlanta native who idolized Michael Vick growing up, attempts to downplay his mobility, the people around him, those who have coached him, view it as his superpower.
—Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Once attempts to sign unspecified defensive linemen fell through in free agency, Lynch said the 49ers pivoted and traded for Osa Odighizuwa from Dallas for a third-round pick.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 29 Mar. 2026
Noun
An outcry five years ago Missouri’s history with Christian boarding schools is why the previous attempts to pass this kind of legislation failed to get any traction.
—Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 31 Mar. 2026
The 6-foot-10 big man made his first six field-goal attempts and scored 11 points in his first eight minutes of floor time.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 31 Mar. 2026
The color represents any and all attempts to impose unnecessary order on the world by both real and self-appointed authority figures.
—Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 30 Mar. 2026
The Giants played the rest of that game without a kicker, with punter Jamie Gillan missing an extra point after their first touchdown and the Giants failing on two-point attempts after their next two.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 30 Mar. 2026
The first-stage booster that had been tapped during the original attempts was discarded for a new booster.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 30 Mar. 2026
Players receive four attempts per hour and can win a maximum of one BOGO entrée or double protein during the campaign while competing for the grand prize of free burritos for a year.
—Gabe Hauari, USA Today, 30 Mar. 2026
UConn made four of its last five 3-point attempts to win the game.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 30 Mar. 2026
Within two minutes of entering the game, Dugalić had two shot attempts in the restricted area.
—Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2026
Verb
This is a phishing campaign that attempts to trick users into a Windows device enrollment process.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 31 Mar. 2026
In fact, Sunday marked two straight games — both losses — with less than 10 field goal attempts.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
But for ordinary Jews in France, attempts to reclaim their homes and furnishings were key to rebuilding their lives.
—Shannon Fogg, The Conversation, 31 Mar. 2026
Indeed, attempts to muffle criticism have backfired, some observers believe.
—Eyal Press, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
Kerr’s system of sustained excellence has captured the notice, admiration, and even attempts at emulation in business and politics.
—John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
Then, while Al-Hashimi attempts to revolutionize the department's technology, Javadi sizes up the competition.
—Billie Melissa, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2026
While Willis, an Atlanta native who idolized Michael Vick growing up, attempts to downplay his mobility, the people around him, those who have coached him, view it as his superpower.
—Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Once attempts to sign unspecified defensive linemen fell through in free agency, Lynch said the 49ers pivoted and traded for Osa Odighizuwa from Dallas for a third-round pick.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 29 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attempts
Noun
-
Johnson was perfect on his opening four tries from beyond the arc.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
23 Mar. 2026
-
Los Angeles needed two tries to inbound the ball on their end of the court and that’s when Kennard sunk the triple.—
Jason Beede,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
According to the independent National Institute for Security Studies in Israel, at least 1,116 people have been killed amid the Israeli attacks in Lebanon since the parallel Iran war began.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has its own navy that also relies on smaller vessels to do swarm attacks and drop mines.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In a world of jaded billionaires, psychiatrist-gurus, bio-hacked tech bros, AI labs and disillusioned teens being optimized in elite private schools, an audacious data-mining CEO (Magnussen) strives to turn insight and influence into profit and power.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Castlery is a direct-to-consumer furniture brand that strives to offer high-end and well-made yet fairly affordable furniture, and the Desmond chair is a testament to that.—
Kate McGregor,
Architectural Digest,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Except then there’s the chance of being FUNNELED, placed on the rails and headed for a very specific destination, instead of the OPEN-WORLD anything-goes of traditional D&D.—
Christopher Borrelli,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The we-might-all-die-if-this-special-effect-goes-wrong stuff.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
According to state officials, the assaults took place between 2002 and 2008.—
Nick Lentz,
CBS News,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Such units have traditionally been used for missions like large-scale evacuations and amphibious operations that require ship-to-shore movements, including raids and assaults.—
James Legge,
CNN Money,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But his cartoons, and some early stabs at photography, were not enough to get him into a local art school.—
Chris Wiley,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
-
New Line has taken stabs at developing a sequel with Heisserer and Chris Borrelli penning scripts over the years.—
Borys Kit,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
At least four similar apps were axed in the following days, including Eyes Up, a platform that archived videos of arrests, raids, and abuses by immigration agents.—
Oriana van Praag,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
-
No ban on mask-wearing federal agents and no requirements for judicial warrants for immigration raids were in the final deal, which could spark a new clash once Congress returns from spring break.—
Phillip M. Bailey,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But the forces being deployed are light infantry, units that lack the large armored vehicles, including tanks, that typically underpin sustained ground offensives.—
Chris Boccia,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Putin is widely expected to launch new offensives as the weather in Ukraine improves, piling further pressure on Kyiv.—
Hanna Arhirova,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Attempts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attempts. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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