as in struggling
to devote serious and sustained effort
the young lawyer labored most of the weekend over the difficult legal brief
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Recent Examples of laboring
In the summer of 2024, UNICEF’s representative in Congo suggested that 361,000 children might be laboring in mines in southern Congo, though this number seems implausibly high and drew quick opprobrium from Congolese NGOs that work on the issue.
—
Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026
What viewers didn’t see was the 40 hours Daniels spent laboring on the project from inside a bomb shelter during a 2025 missile attack in Kyiv.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 21 Jan. 2026
That’s right, the Patriot did in two seasons what the Dolphins have been laboring since 2008 to achieve.
—Miami Herald, 16 Dec. 2025
Mobley had been laboring to expand his range all offseason, launching thousands of 3s.
—Mirin Fader, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025
Mohamed Hacham, who realized the laboring woman couldn’t wait for the fire rescue team.
—Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 10 Nov. 2025
The Dodgers then knocked off the Giants in the NL Division Series, though Scherzer lost his Game 3 start – allowing three hits and a run on Evan Longoria’s game-deciding homer while laboring seven innings and 110 pitches.
—Jim Alexander, Oc Register, 26 Oct. 2025
With The Fulfillment, the sub-context is how clout culture is a currency, how attention itself has become a currency, just like our laboring bodies are.
—Christopher Claxton, Billboard, 19 Sep. 2025
While such a scenario sounds potentially maudlin and manipulative, Lucero — who wrote the film from a personal place — never allows that to happen by making the characters complex and flawed, and laboring under real-life issues.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026
What viewers didn’t see was the 40 hours Daniels spent laboring on the project from inside a bomb shelter during a 2025 missile attack in Kyiv.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 21 Jan. 2026
That’s right, the Patriot did in two seasons what the Dolphins have been laboring since 2008 to achieve.
—Miami Herald, 16 Dec. 2025
Mobley had been laboring to expand his range all offseason, launching thousands of 3s.
—Mirin Fader, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025
Mohamed Hacham, who realized the laboring woman couldn’t wait for the fire rescue team.
—Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 10 Nov. 2025
The Dodgers then knocked off the Giants in the NL Division Series, though Scherzer lost his Game 3 start – allowing three hits and a run on Evan Longoria’s game-deciding homer while laboring seven innings and 110 pitches.
—Jim Alexander, Oc Register, 26 Oct. 2025
With The Fulfillment, the sub-context is how clout culture is a currency, how attention itself has become a currency, just like our laboring bodies are.
—Christopher Claxton, Billboard, 19 Sep. 2025
While such a scenario sounds potentially maudlin and manipulative, Lucero — who wrote the film from a personal place — never allows that to happen by making the characters complex and flawed, and laboring under real-life issues.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for laboring
Verb
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However, the technology has been moving faster than state regulations can accommodate, and lawmakers have been struggling to walk the line between innovation and patient safety.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
8 Jan. 2026
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And, for many borrowers struggling with debt, exploring alternatives like debt settlement or consolidation may offer significant relief without the complications that bankruptcy rules can create.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Zelenskyy is also striving to keep the world’s attention focused on Ukraine despite other conflicts.—
Kamila Hrabchuk,
Fortune,
22 Jan. 2026
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Zelensky is also striving to keep the world’s attention focused on Ukraine despite other conflicts.—
Kamila Hrabchuk,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Hardemon, working with Miami City Commission Chairwoman Christine King and CRA Executive Director James McQueen, imagined a future that put Overtown at the center of art and innovation.—
Dorothy Jenkins Fields,
Miami Herald,
9 Jan. 2026
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Not working with the federal agency is not the response the City of Pittsburgh Republican Committee wanted to hear.—
Chris Hoffman,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Or is the takeaway that there is always value in endeavoring to cultivate some form of consensus – no matter how small – over whether certain lines can never be crossed?—
B.B. Blaber,
The Conversation,
8 Dec. 2025
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Skilled forgers started to catch on, endeavoring to cash in on that development.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Those past records found the artist toiling through major personal losses, including his mother in 2016 and his sister in 2019.—
Maya Georgi,
Rolling Stone,
23 Jan. 2026
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After a decade of toiling largely behind the scenes, David decided to take some credit.—
Reeves Wiedeman,
Vulture,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Laboring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/laboring. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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