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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

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2
as in efforts
very hard or unpleasant work these villagers now have decent housing, so our travail has not been in vain

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3
as in childbirths
the act or process of giving birth to children a midwife assisted her throughout her long travail

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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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of travails
Noun
The comedy-drama will revisit the lives and travails of the eponymous sisters. — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for travails
  1. pains
  2. efforts
  3. childbirths
  4. struggles
  5. distresses
  6. labors
  7. deliveries
  8. strives
Noun
  • The new Brad Pitt vehicle, directed by David Ayer, takes pains to start with a scene that exists only to make this clear.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Joint and muscle pains are all too common for women in midlife.
    — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of pains
Noun
  • An international mission in March documented escalating police violence, smear campaigns fueled by public officials, persistent impunity, legal and digital threats and the ruling party's efforts to tighten its grip over the media, CPJ said.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Sep. 2026
  • The cost-cutting efforts have led to longer expected delivery times and lowered service-performance goals that USPS has been unable to fully reach, a recent Government Accountability Office report found.
    — Hansi Lo Wang, NPR, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of efforts
Noun
  • The human neurons suffered severe, selective damage, mimicking the cellular breakdown that causes cerebral palsy in human infants during difficult childbirths.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Congo's has among the world's highest rates of both childbirths per woman and deaths around childbirth.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of childbirths
Verb
  • Her tragic fate has inspired other former child stars to speak out about the pressure and struggles that often accompany fame at an early age.
    — Holly Yan, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026
  • In the show’s second season, Lumon struggles to contain the fallout from these discoveries and fires the head of the severed floor, Harmony Cobel (Patricia Arquette), replacing her with her former deputy, Seth Milchick (Tillman).
    — Jordana Rosenfeld, Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of struggles
Noun
  • Pain, infection, medication side effects, and other physical and emotional distresses may be expressed through shouting, intimidating gestures, kicking, pushing, or punching.
    — Jordan Rau, NPR, 19 July 2026
Definition of distresses
Noun
  • Teaching and coaching are labors of love passed down from Lee’s father, Robert, who spent his career coaching and teaching students in Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools.
    — PJ Green August 27, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Exclusion generates the prestige toward which unpaid labors strive.
    — M. C. Mah, Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of labors
Noun
  • Production will begin in early 2027 and the first deliveries to customers are expected in March, chief executive Jim DeLuca told Semafor in an interview on the sidelines of the launch event.
    — Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • One of her recent deliveries was for Green Meadows resident Norma, whose door is decorated with pictures of flowers.
    — Wakisha Bailey, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of deliveries
Verb
  • Till is a member of the Firekeeper Alliance, which has close ties with the festival, and strives to decrease the suicide rate among indigenous youths through teaching them about heavy metal.
    — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2026
  • The team is keenly aware that in the modern market, trust is not bought but earned, and Vita Bella strives to achieve this every step of the way.
    — William Jones, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of strives

Browse Nearby Words

travailing
travails
travel
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Cite this Entry

“Travails.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/travails. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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