1
as in stumbles
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
each week I would struggle through my piano lesson, keenly aware that I wasn't getting any better
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in strives
to devote serious and sustained effort
the financially strapped couple struggled to make ends meet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in battles
a forceful effort to reach a goal or objective
a performer's long struggle to achieve success
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in clashes
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
there was a struggle between the armed robber and the shopkeeper, and the gun went off
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in rivalries
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
her staunchest supporters in her struggle for the office
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of struggles
Harry Bennett, Space.com, 10 Nov. 2025
That quest comes to a screeching halt due to the 2008 recession, as Jackie scrambles to adjust to a new lifestyle while husband David struggles to keep his timeshare empire from crumbling.
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Nov. 2025
In episode 9, Dane will play Matthew, a heroic firefighter who struggles to share his ALS diagnosis with his family, according to a press release.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025
Despite these measures, investigators acknowledge that Brazil’s penitentiaries remain the backbone of command and communication for its largest criminal organizations — a paradox that the state struggles to contain.
—Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 9 Nov. 2025
About 6 miles southwest of Jaymes' apartment, Terry Murray, 76, and his wife Mickey Murray, 89, who struggles with stairs, encountered their own set of issues at Evergreen Retirement Community in Hartwell.
—Sydney Franklin, Cincinnati Enquirer, 9 Nov. 2025
As the city also struggles with an ongoing housing crunch, Estabine adds any campaign designed to convert more Loop offices into units residents can call home could go a long way toward solving both problems.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 8 Nov. 2025
But the phenonmena is more prevalent right now as Gen Z struggles to find connections in real life amid the era of dating apps.
—Charles Trepany, USA Today, 7 Nov. 2025
The book, illustrated by Petra Brown and geared toward kids ages 3 to 7, follows a young girl named Kat who struggles to continue horseback riding after falling off a horse.
—Anna Halkidis, Parents, 3 Nov. 2025
Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025
The struggles of being a parent and the struggles of your child are so understandably private.
—Rosemary Rossi, Variety, 9 Nov. 2025
Lastly, many investors have questioned the company’s dividend payout ratio, which has remained relatively large despite these ongoing struggles.
—Kenneth Squire, CNBC, 8 Nov. 2025
However, the school fired Franklin last month after early season struggles that found the program sitting at 3-3.
—Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 8 Nov. 2025
Therefore, McDaniel has to take some responsibility for this roster’s poor construction, and most importantly, slow talent development, which didn’t just start in 2025 with the struggles of this year’s rookies.
—Omar Kelly
november 7, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
The end of the F-150 would follow trouble for electric truck models offered by Stellantis and General Motors, as well as recent struggles with truck demand for Tesla and Rivian.
—Callie Patteson, The Washington Examiner, 7 Nov. 2025
The lack of depth at linebacker likely contributed to Michigan’s struggles getting Purdue off the field.
—Austin Meek, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Firake cited Kodak’s business struggles as an example of a company that failed to respond quickly to technological disruption and adapt its model.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 31 Oct. 2025
Verb
Getting perfectly pinpoint stars can be a struggle from the lack of low-light autofocus and struggles with faint objects in the optical viewfinder.
—Harry Bennett, Space.com, 10 Nov. 2025
That quest comes to a screeching halt due to the 2008 recession, as Jackie scrambles to adjust to a new lifestyle while husband David struggles to keep his timeshare empire from crumbling.
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Nov. 2025
In episode 9, Dane will play Matthew, a heroic firefighter who struggles to share his ALS diagnosis with his family, according to a press release.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025
Despite these measures, investigators acknowledge that Brazil’s penitentiaries remain the backbone of command and communication for its largest criminal organizations — a paradox that the state struggles to contain.
—Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 9 Nov. 2025
About 6 miles southwest of Jaymes' apartment, Terry Murray, 76, and his wife Mickey Murray, 89, who struggles with stairs, encountered their own set of issues at Evergreen Retirement Community in Hartwell.
—Sydney Franklin, Cincinnati Enquirer, 9 Nov. 2025
As the city also struggles with an ongoing housing crunch, Estabine adds any campaign designed to convert more Loop offices into units residents can call home could go a long way toward solving both problems.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 8 Nov. 2025
But the phenonmena is more prevalent right now as Gen Z struggles to find connections in real life amid the era of dating apps.
—Charles Trepany, USA Today, 7 Nov. 2025
The book, illustrated by Petra Brown and geared toward kids ages 3 to 7, follows a young girl named Kat who struggles to continue horseback riding after falling off a horse.
—Anna Halkidis, Parents, 3 Nov. 2025
Noun
But behind closed doors, the then-couple were facing marital struggles, as Betty claimed in her 2015 memoir, Telling On Myself.
—Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025
The struggles of being a parent and the struggles of your child are so understandably private.
—Rosemary Rossi, Variety, 9 Nov. 2025
Lastly, many investors have questioned the company’s dividend payout ratio, which has remained relatively large despite these ongoing struggles.
—Kenneth Squire, CNBC, 8 Nov. 2025
However, the school fired Franklin last month after early season struggles that found the program sitting at 3-3.
—Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 8 Nov. 2025
Therefore, McDaniel has to take some responsibility for this roster’s poor construction, and most importantly, slow talent development, which didn’t just start in 2025 with the struggles of this year’s rookies.
—Omar Kelly
november 7, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
The end of the F-150 would follow trouble for electric truck models offered by Stellantis and General Motors, as well as recent struggles with truck demand for Tesla and Rivian.
—Callie Patteson, The Washington Examiner, 7 Nov. 2025
The lack of depth at linebacker likely contributed to Michigan’s struggles getting Purdue off the field.
—Austin Meek, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Firake cited Kodak’s business struggles as an example of a company that failed to respond quickly to technological disruption and adapt its model.
—Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 31 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for struggles
Verb
-
But Zoë’s first adaptation stumbles out of the gate — in large part because this show isn’t really her show.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
29 Oct. 2025
-
With the three Premier League stumbles and a grating 1-0 Champions League shutout to Galatasaray, Liverpool found itself with four uninterrupted losses for the first time since 2014.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The development comes as Netflix strives to become more competitive with its peers in the battle to win ad dollars from Madison Avenue.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Everyone strives for that state and pours their love into it.—
Billboard Japan,
Billboard,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
At the same time, food aid was delayed for tens of millions of people as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits were caught up in legal battles related to the shutdown.—
Orianna Rosa Royle,
Fortune,
10 Nov. 2025
-
River Raisin National Battlefield Park in Monroe honors the history of the January 1813 battles of the War of 1812 and their aftermath.—
Jenna Prestininzi,
Freep.com,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Since Assad’s ousting, Syria has seen flare-ups of deadly sectarian violence, with clashes erupting between security forces and those loyal to the former president, including in Syria’s coastal Latakia region in March.—
Sophie Tanno,
CNN Money,
9 Nov. 2025
-
As for South Sudan, a senior United Nations official said earlier this week that the ongoing conflict in Sudan is causing destabilization in South Sudan, including armed clashes and food insecurity.—
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Few crosstown rivalries can compare to the one Hingham and Notre Dame Academy have developed the past few decades.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
-
The history of contemporary music is littered with hundreds of rivalries both amicable and otherwise.—
Jason Newman,
Rolling Stone,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The Democratic crackup that’s now underway in Washington is distracting the party from a series of brutal fights just ahead that will culminate in next year’s midterms.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
10 Nov. 2025
-
Martin's fights, namely her 1996 match against Deirdre Gogarty, brought women's boxing to a whole new audience.—
Ralphie Aversa,
USA Today,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
David Wolf, the executive director of the Legacy of the Plains Museum in Scottsbluff, said experts estimate that as many 10 people died for every mile of the trail ‒ perhaps as many as 20,000 travelers, plus an unknown number of Native Americans killed during skirmishes.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Amid the skirmishes that ensued, federal agents fired a chemical agent toward a protester at near-point-blank range, and security personnel later opened fire on a U-Haul truck that had backed up toward a barrier on the island’s bridge, injuring the driver and an apparent bystander.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
26 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Some of those territories were invaded with the tacit support of Western allies keen to prop up an anti-communist leader, at a time when proxy conflicts backed by the US and the Soviet Union raged across the Global South.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
11 Nov. 2025
-
These two conflicts heat up very quickly, with Dale plunging his elbow into the soup and then getting in Ron’s face, telling him to kiss it.—
Ben Rosenstock,
Vulture,
10 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Struggles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/struggles. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
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