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

In the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak, Maya struggles to maintain the beauty and optimism Charlie’s presence brought into her life. — Jourdain Searles, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026

Ukraine struggles to stop them, and its engineers are working on the issue 24/7 as a matter of life and death. — Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026

Congo’s government struggles to exert control over the east of the country, where more than 100 armed groups are vying for control of trillions of dollars in mineral wealth that’s critical for much of the world’s technology. — ABC News, 14 Sep. 2026

But that feels very different after Brown’s injury and Doubs’ struggles in his debut. — Chad Graff, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

The move was sure to spark criticism that the president was paying Americans to vote Republican as the party struggles to match Democrats’ enthusiasm and faces a challenging midterm outlook. — Joey Garrison, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026

Yet, the technology still struggles with creating videos with a clear sense of depth and complex lighting, Lu said. — Ling Wei, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026

Think intense or extended exercise, illness with vomiting or diarrhea, hot weather combined with physical labor and anyone who genuinely struggles to drink enough plain water. — Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 9 Sep. 2026

Deep in the Pyrenees mountains, a young man, Miquel, struggles in the wake of his mother’s death in a snowstorm — a tragic event that was at the center of Tóibín’s 2006 novella, A Long Winter. — Mary Lawrence Ware, semafor.com, 3 Sep. 2026

Noun

Their lives intersect during the making of a documentary, drawing out desires and struggles each had kept hidden. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 14 Sep. 2026

Sitting around the fire pit, toes in the sand, the students share stories with me about the cuisine; traditional string instrument sasando, made of bamboo; and their struggles with learning to swim. — Michelle Jana Chan, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Sep. 2026

Outside of Sunday’s late-game bullpen struggles in a 9-4 loss, the Braves showed signs of a team rounding into postseason form. — Jesús Cano, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026

But Mora emphasizes that the largest number of drone reports come from within Mexico, particularly in the state of Sinaloa, amid the internal struggles of the powerful cartel that operates there. — Sol Amaya, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026

Olympian Michael Phelps has been open about his struggles with mental health. — Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026

Bobby previously wrote about his childhood in his 2024 cookbook, Chapter One, noting that his academic struggles were offset by his athletic skill. — Erin Clements, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2026

Two years have passed since then, and the country has faced agonizing struggles to achieve recovery and finally reclaim its daily life. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 8 Sep. 2026