Synonyms of struggles

struggles 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of struggle

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

• stumbles
• blunders
• flounders
• shuffles
• trudges
• fumbles
• limps
• jogs
• lurches
• falters
• plods
• lumbers
• sways
• reels
• bumbles
• wallows
• shambles
• flogs
• staggers
• totters
• muddles
• welters
• teeters

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• flies
• glides
• sails
• zooms
• coasts
• zips
• kilts

2

as in strives

to devote serious and sustained effort

the financially strapped couple struggled to make ends meet

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

struggles

2 of 2

noun

plural of struggle

1

as in battles

a forceful effort to reach a goal or objective

a performer's long struggle to achieve success

Synonyms & Similar Words

• battles
• fights
• efforts
• frays
• throes
• works
• attempts
• pains
• scrabbles
• tries
• troubles
• toils
• endeavors
• exertions
• travails
• grinds
• wars
• conflicts
• tussles
• labors
• sweats
• contests
• drudgeries
• combats
• strifes
• essays
• warfares

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

• clashes
• fights
• battles
• skirmishes
• tussles
• scuffles
• conflicts
• dustups
• brawls
• frays
• contests
• confrontations
• scrimmages
• altercations
• combats
• scraps
• duels
• fracases
• blows
• hassles
• quarrels
• pitched battles
• disputes
• scrums
• squabbles
• battles royal
• controversies
• broils
• tangles
• mix-ups
• wrangles
• disagreements
• fistfights
• melees
• rough-and-tumbles
• grapples
• spats
• affrays
• misunderstandings
• slugfests
• punch-outs
• fisticuffs
• ruckuses
• jousts
• rows
• ructions
• donnybrooks
• contretemps
• tiffs
• arguments
• punch-ups
• fallings-out
• catfights
• cross fires
• handgrips
• kickups
• face-offs
• free-for-alls
• argle-bargles
• argy-bargies

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• truces

3

as in rivalries

an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another

her staunchest supporters in her struggle for the office

Synonyms & Similar Words

• battles
• rivalries
• conflicts
• confrontations
• contentions
• duels
• competitions
• wars
• matches
• contests
• warfares
• clashes
• strifes
• grapples
• combats
• ball games
• dogfights
• sweepstakes
• tugs-of-war
• showdowns
• debates
• disputes
• face-offs
• horse races
• frictions
• disputations
• controversies
• quarrels
• disagreements
• collisions
• arguments
• discords
• wrangles
• nail-biters
• dissensions
• rows

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• harmonies
• concords
• peaces

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of struggles

Verb

Once an avid Pilates goer, Beretti struggles to go up the stairs and can no longer run or jump. — Ella Moore july 23, Miami Herald, 23 July 2026

Funding is also a problem, as the severely degraded local health system in eastern Congo, as well as NGOs, struggles to cope as Ebola spreads in remote rural areas. — Emmet Livingstone, NPR, 23 July 2026

A student who struggles to retrieve an idea, connect two concepts, or work through a difficult problem may be doing the work that makes learning durable. — Ray Ravaglia, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026

When a team struggles to get results and win games, all the uncontrollables — like officiating — must go your way. — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 23 July 2026

Like many rural counties, Maui struggles with a severe physician and nursing shortage, a problem that the fires also exacerbated. — Angus Chen, STAT, 22 July 2026

Instead of treating her and Povich’s pregnancy struggles with care, the pair were widely mocked in the media and on late-night shows, including on In Living Color, which had premiered on Fox in 1990. — Victoria Edel, PEOPLE, 22 July 2026

The actor plays Rob Gordon, a Chicago music-store owner who struggles with relationships and responsibility. — Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 16 July 2026

Speaking of social media, your Five Star Weekend character struggles a bit with authenticity and her followers. — Clarissa Cruz, Entertainment Weekly, 16 July 2026

Noun

There are also examples of schools that reject students with academic or behavioral struggles. — Peter Greene, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026

In a place whose people are forced to endure the same struggles as their parents (to paraphrase one of this film’s most aching laments), time will always be a flat circle. — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 22 July 2026

Whitney has been candid on past seasons of RHOSLC about her relationship struggles. — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 22 July 2026

And others — Austin Jackson for example, and hopefully Chop Robinson — grow out of their struggles. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 22 July 2026

Baker hopes that young viewers take away a valuable lesson as Chloe deals with her friendship struggles. — Kimberly Nordyke, HollywoodReporter, 21 July 2026

His struggles aren’t solved; he’s just found a new means of battling them. — Eli Enis, Pitchfork, 15 July 2026

Early this season, the Braves were flying high, holding the best record in baseball and making many fans forget about last season’s struggles. — AJC.com, 15 July 2026

But there is no shortage of players who have played a role in getting the club to 46 wins, and also plenty whose struggles helped pile up 48 losses, too. — Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 14 July 2026