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
Visiting the facility, which Sara did every day, took hours, but the commute was the least of her travails. — Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 13 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 Caught between two opposing cultures, drawing on a cache of letters, documents, and remembrances, Ferrer meticulously recounts the travails of one migrant family and a punitive legal system that dogged them, skewering ideals of equity and fairness. — Hamilton Cain, Time, 7 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 Gaudette used a series of AI tools — and not a single actor, producer or crew member — to tell his tender story of a man who, for all his travails, hardly wallows in his station. — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 17 June 2026 Its current travails are likely to be a model for the nation too. — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 11 June 2026 But through all the travails of a second consecutive 10th-place finish, developmental strides were made, tangible growth spurts for what could follow. — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 13 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for travails
  1. pains
  2. efforts
  3. childbirths
  4. struggles
  5. agonies
  6. labors
  7. deliveries
  8. strives
Noun
  • Having witnessed centuries of religious warfare in Europe, when millions were killed for their beliefs, the framers took pains to make sure nothing like that would happen here.
    — Kenneth Seeskin, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026
  • Perhaps second only to getting sunburned through your favorite white dress, the greatest casualty of summer fashion is the aches and pains brought on by your cutest but least supportive shoes.
    — Annie Blackman, InStyle, 4 July 2026
Definition of pains
Noun
  • Meanwhile, traditional efforts to take undocumented immigrants into custody from their homes have become less effective.
    — Andy Rose, CNN Money, 16 July 2026
  • The benefit brings together figures from the art, film, fashion and entertainment worlds while raising funds for LACMA’s broader mission and its efforts to make film a more integral part of the museum’s programming.
    — Ryma Chikhoune, Footwear News, 15 July 2026
Definition of efforts
Noun
  • Many women may not be aware at all that private details of their childbirths were shared with law enforcement.
    — Shoshana Walter, CBS News, 10 Feb. 2026
  • In some Michigan counties, Medicaid covers more than half of all childbirths.
    — Kristen Jordan Shamus, Freep.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Definition of childbirths
Verb
  • 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
Definition of struggles
Noun
  • The reticence of Cartland’s heroes belies agonies of loneliness.
    — Simon Perry, PEOPLE, 18 June 2026
  • Although the novel’s center does not quite hold, O’Farrell’s emotional intelligence — the heart and heat of her characters — braces this sometimes unwieldy chronicle of a nation that has been subject to cumbrous historic agonies.
    — Rachel Vorona Cote, Vulture, 2 June 2026
Definition of agonies
Noun
  • Their heroic labors produced the versions that, copied and recopied on papyrus and later on parchment, arrived at last at a printing press in Florence.
    — David Denby, New Yorker, 21 June 2026
  • Justine Siegemund, a German midwife who learned her practice by studying books, was often asked to consult on complex labors.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 June 2026
Definition of labors
Noun
  • The advance Nielsen estimates peg Fox’s subsequent Argentina-Switzerland deliveries at just shy of 16 million viewers, although both averages are expected to rise upon application of the final Big Data + Panel numbers.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 14 July 2026
  • Producing more plans and increasing deliveries is essential to Boeing improving its annual free cash flow.
    — Jeff Marks, CNBC, 14 July 2026
Definition of deliveries
Verb
  • Resistance is mounting today, too, in response to AI and data center buildout, even as industrial policy everywhere strives to stimulate its growth.
    — Nili Gilbert, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
  • Perusing the menu online provides insight into how truly diverse Sushi Sushi strives to be.
    — Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 1 July 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 17 Jul. 2026.

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