Synonyms of strains

strains 1 of 3

noun (1)

plural of strain

1

as in lineages

the line of ancestors from whom a person is descended

descended from a strain of Irish seafarers

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lineages
• ancestries
• pedigrees
• genealogies
• origins
• families
• descents
• extractions
• blood
• stocks
• bloodlines
• births
• breedings
• lines
• family trees
• parentages
• relatives
• relations
• successions
• races
• houses
• kins
• heredities
• kindreds

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• issues
• seed
• progenies
• offspring
• children
• sons
• posterities
• successors
• heirs
• inheritors

2

as in melodies

a rhythmic series of musical tones arranged to give a pleasing effect

the strain of an old Irish ballad rose up from the revelers downstairs

Synonyms & Similar Words

• melodies
• songs
• tunes
• hymns
• airs
• warbles
• lyrics
• lays
• rhythms
• cadences
• ballads
• meters
• measures
• descants
• ditties
• madrigals

3

as in splashes

a very small amount

detected a strain of panic in her voice when she asked if the substance was poisonous

Synonyms & Similar Words

• splashes
• specks
• sprinklings
• glimmers
• touches
• hints
• little
• licks
• bits
• traces
• particles
• sparks
• suspicions
• dabs
• shadows
• shades
• flecks
• rays
• streaks
• shreds
• smells
• mites
• drams
• scruples
• ounces
• slivers
• driblets
• peanuts
• spots
• nips
• soupçons
• handfuls
• bites
• parts
• molecules
• spatters
• drops
• grains
• pinches
• smacks
• crumbs
• syllables
• scintillas
• tastes
• snaps
• doses
• skoshes
• aces
• dashes
• fragments
• minims
• drops in the bucket
• smidgens
• atoms
• vestiges
• patches
• sections
• minima
• dots
• granules
• portions
• motes
• semblances
• flyspecks
• nibbles
• splinters
• morsels
• smatterings
• scraps
• shivers
• shards
• flakes
• hoots
• nubbins
• modicums
• whits
• scatterings
• jots
• iotas
• chips
• smatters
• tittles
• clippings
• parings
• tatters
• shavings
• shots
• smithereens

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• quantities
• loads
• masses
• mountains
• piles
• barrels
• bundles
• abundances
• stacks
• buckets
• rafts
• bushels
• volumes
• deals
• lots
• reams
• heaps
• messes
• wealths
• wads
• pecks
• scads
• gobs
• oodles
• fistfuls
• boatloads
• excesses
• lashings
• surpluses
• profusions
• embarrassments
• much
• potfuls
• plenties
• overflows
• passels
• slabs
• overages
• bonanzas
• superfluities
• chunks
• lumps
• overmuch
• hunks
• oversupplies
• overabundances
• surfeits
• overkills
• superabundances

4

as in types

a number of persons or things that are grouped together because they have something in common

writes mystery novels of a more sophisticated strain

Synonyms & Similar Words

• types
• kinds
• genres
• varieties
• sorts
• stripes
• breeds
• species
• natures
• descriptions
• kidneys
• classes
• manners
• feathers
• likes
• persuasions
• ilks
• samples
• orders
• categories
• specimens
• models
• groups
• families
• groupings
• ranks
• brackets
• suites
• divisions
• sets
• grades
• bunches
• lots

strains

2 of 3

noun (2)

plural of strain

as in stresses

the burden on one's emotional or mental well-being created by demands on one's time

the family's constant moving is putting a real strain on the children

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stresses
• pressures
• tensions
• worries
• loads
• anxieties
• concerns
• weights
• irritations
• persecutions
• troubles
• angers
• exasperations
• annoyances
• aggravations

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• comforts
• consolations

strains

3 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of strain

1

as in pulls

to injure by overuse, misuse, or pressure

in order to lift something heavy, squat down and lift with your legs, or you'll strain your back

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pulls
• damages
• bruises
• stretches
• hurts
• racks
• weakens
• wounds
• tears
• wrenches
• taxes
• harms
• frays
• impairs
• lames
• cripples
• batters
• mutilates
• mangles

2

as in filters

to pass through a filter

better strain that coffee thoroughly to get all the grounds out

Synonyms & Similar Words

• filters
• screens
• percolates
• leaches

3

as in struggles

to devote serious and sustained effort

the whole department is straining to complete the project before the deadline

Synonyms & Similar Words

• struggles
• labors
• strives
• works
• endeavors
• slaves
• tugs
• toils
• sweats
• tries
• plows
• humps
• travails
• hustles
• plugs
• grubs
• pegs (away)
• bangs away
• digs (away)
• fags
• drudges
• sweats blood
• plods
• attacks
• moils
• buckles (down)
• slogs
• applies (oneself)
• beavers (away)
• exercises
• hammers (away)
• knuckles down
• pitches in
• scratches
• essays
• exerts
• grinds (out)
• drives
• digs in
• overworks
• ekes out
• overexerts
• wades
• trudges
• puts out
• scrabbles

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• breaks
• eases (up)
• slackens
• chills
• slacks (off)
• lets up
• lounges
• goofs (off)
• hangs (around or out)
• lazes
• goldbricks
• rests
• bums
• loafs
• shirks
• dillydallies
• dallies
• idles
• unwinds
• hacks (around)
• plays
• relaxes
• footles
• basks
• reposes
• lolls
• hangs
• fools around
• fribbles
• trifles
• hangs about
• vegges out
• messes around
• doodles
• goofs (around)
• dabbles
• potters (around)
• monkeys (around)
• putters (around)

4

as in drips

to flow forth slowly through small openings

put the cooked fruit in a cheesecloth bag and let the juice strain into a pan

Synonyms & Similar Words

• drips
• flows
• seeps
• percolates
• exudes
• oozes
• sweats
• bleeds
• weeps
• transudes
• springs
• emanates
• trickles
• gives off
• emits
• dribbles
• vents
• discharges

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• streams
• surges
• floods
• pours
• gushes

5

as in stretches

to subject (a personal quality or faculty) to often excessive stress

strained her memory but the name just wouldn't come to her

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stretches
• tests
• tries
• gets (to)
• pushes
• taxes
• pressures
• pains
• annoys
• demands
• bothers
• irritates
• exasperates
• aggravates
• presses
• harasses
• importunes
• irks
• grates
• exacts
• nettles
• hassles
• galls
• vexes
• gnaws (at)
• riles
• pesters
• agitates
• peeves
• harries
• spites

6

as in tightens

to draw tight

the dog strained its leash trying to get to the cat

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tightens
• tenses
• stretches
• tautens
• elongates
• lengthens
• extends
• constricts
• cinches

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• slacks
• loosens
• eases
• slackens
• relaxes

7

as in hugs

to put one's arms around and press tightly

the woman tenderly strained to her breast the child that she had long ago given up for dead

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hugs
• clasps
• cradles
• clings
• embraces
• wraps
• crushes
• bear-hugs
• enfolds
• grasps
• enclasps
• grabs
• clamps
• holds
• grips
• folds
• locks
• snuggles
• envelops
• pats
• strokes
• pets
• entwines
• twines
• bosoms
• embosoms
• encircles
• enwinds
• cuddles
• nuzzles
• nestles
• fondles

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of strains

Noun

Having a drug based on the 16 phages could help fight antibiotic-resistant strains more effectively, Hie said. — Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 7 Aug. 2026

Disruptions at Bab el-Mandeb force Saudi crude onto longer, costlier routes and add to strains on global trade. — Manal Albarakati, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2026

And there have been issues with adapting seasonal vaccines when expected strains surprise us with unexpected mutations. — New Atlas, 7 Aug. 2026

Haunting strains of music and clusters of colorful birdhouses lead visitors to Ibbi Pip. — Lisa Greissinger, Travel + Leisure, 7 Aug. 2026

But many bacterial strains have already evolved resistance to some families of viruses, including ΦX174. — ArsTechnica, 6 Aug. 2026

Another type of medication, called echinocandins, can be used to treat it in many cases, but some strains have also shown resistance to this drug. — Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 6 Aug. 2026

Center backs Maxi Falcon and Gonzalo Lujan remained unavailable while recovering from calf strains. — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 2 Aug. 2026

The team says the molecular analysis indicates that the strains existed in a now-extinct variola virus lineage that bridges Old World European strains with its later variants. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 30 July 2026

Verb

Inflation strains budgets when income doesn't keep pace with rising prices. — Catherine Brock, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026

Wasting water increases your utility bills and strains local water and energy resources. — Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 27 July 2026

The second-place club has been without Giancarlo Stanton (multiple calf strains) since April 24 and missing Aaron Judge (fractured rib) since May 31. — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 26 July 2026

Hamstring strains on both legs cost him three games in his final college season and the Saints already have him on a rehab and reps management program. — Jonathan Rubin, Charlotte Observer, 24 July 2026

To ask a rancher, or for that matter a beef processor, to do that strains their human compassion for people paying higher prices for food. — David Frum, The Atlantic, 22 July 2026

Purple City Genetics, a long-standing cannabis nursery, breeder and seed producer based in Oakland, set up a display of some of its most popular cloned plants, including the Moroccan Peaches and Bolinas strains. — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 19 July 2026

If your ambition strains your calendar, map the work in blocks and protect a buffer. — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 July 2026

Fancher cautions that a partial blockage can turn into a full one fast when a house full of guests strains the plumbing. — Sharon Wu, USA Today, 4 July 2026