Synonyms of travails

travails 1 of 2

noun

plural of travail

1

as in pains

a state of great suffering of body or mind

no greater travail than that of parents who have suffered the death of a child

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pains
• distresses
• agonies
• miseries
• anguishes
• tribulations
• woes
• torments
• tortures
• straits
• sorrows
• pangs
• discomforts
• hurts
• hardships
• afflictions
• racks
• dangers
• heartbreaks
• troubles
• heartaches
• difficulties
• excruciations
• emergencies
• aches
• trials
• rigors
• crucibles
• throes
• crosses
• asperities
• stitches
• jeopardies
• pinches
• twinges

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• consolations
• comforts
• solaces
• alleviations
• eases
• reliefs
• assuagements
• securities
• peaces
• well-beings

2

as in efforts

very hard or unpleasant work

these villagers now have decent housing, so our travail has not been in vain

Synonyms & Similar Words

• efforts
• labors
• toils
• pains
• struggles
• fatigues
• sweats
• exertions
• troubles
• drudgeries
• grinds
• slaveries
• drudges
• responsibilities
• donkeyworks
• moils
• obligations
• duties
• jobs
• chores
• spadeworks
• treadmills
• routines
• tediums

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• plays
• fun
• relaxations
• eases
• sports
• rests
• dalliances
• reposes
• amusements
• diversions
• entertainments
• recreations
• leisures
• inertias
• decompressions
• inactivities
• dormancies

3

as in childbirths

the act or process of giving birth to children

a midwife assisted her throughout her long travail

Synonyms & Similar Words

• childbirths
• pregnancies
• deliveries
• pains
• labors
• contractions
• accouchements
• parturitions
• childbearings
• birth pangs
• confinements
• cesarean sections
• natural childbirths
• childbeds
• lyings-in

travails

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of travail

as in struggles

to devote serious and sustained effort

Labor Day is the day on which we recognize those men and women who daily travail with little appreciation or compensation

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of travails

Noun

What happens next at first feels like a dreadful narrative misstep, seemingly reinforcing the idea that cutting oneself off from others can save them from life’s travails. — Jay Weissberg, Variety, 7 Sep. 2026

The moment was loosely evocative of Clooney’s recent performance in Jay Kelly, a comedy-drama about the personal travails of a Clooney-esque movie star that culminates with the character receiving a lifetime honor at a swanky Italian film festival. — Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2026

Given the travails of Bessent, its contents will make interesting reading. — John Cassidy, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2026

That’s partly thanks to Holland, a smart, sensitive actor who, inside a stretchy suit or not, takes his character’s emotional travails just seriously enough. — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 28 July 2026

Another young woman named Maurine Dallas Watkins reported Annan’s expedited travails through Cook County’s legal system for the Tribune. — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 11 July 2026

The country’s tragic 21st-century travails provide much of the fodder for the couple’s drama in director Cyril Aris’ moving film, including whether to stay or emigrate, with touches of magical realism and whimsy providing levity. — David Faris, TheWeek, 6 July 2026

Despite their travails in Tehran, the atmosphere in the cafe felt lax, with many women not heeding the country’s law requiring women to cover their heads and the shape of their bodies. — Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 22 June 2026

Its current travails are likely to be a model for the nation too. — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 11 June 2026