TRYING Synonyms: 139 Similar and Opposite Words

trying 1 of 2

adjective

ˈtrī-iŋ

Definition of trying

as in hard

difficult to endure a harrowing account of the trying conditions experienced by the climbers before they were rescued

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

trying

2 of 2

verb

present participle of try

as in stretching

to subject (a personal quality or faculty) to often excessive stress you're trying my patience

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in attempting

to make an effort to do try to unlock the door will try to call later tonight

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 trying

Adjective

When your spouse passes away, this can be a very trying and confusing time. — Thomas Hager, Forbes.com, 12 Sep. 2025 Jax is in the middle of his most trying experience since his rookie season. — Dan Hayes, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2025

Verb

The takeaway may be that organizations are better off committing to one model than trying to straddle both. — Kristin Stoller, Fortune, 27 July 2026 Now comes the ultimate test of trying to earn a place among Europe’s elite in the Champions League group stage. — Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 21 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for trying

Recent Examples of Synonyms for trying

Adjective

Not play-act, but do the real work, make the hard and noble choices, not forsake his vows but live by them.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
Adding another employee, buying a new piece of equipment, or expanding into a larger space all become harder when the tax code penalizes those investments.

— Kent Strang, Boston Herald, 26 July 2026

Definition of hard

Verb

The attacks targeted Kyiv and nine other regions, the president said, stretching from Lviv in the country's west and its border with Poland to Sumy and Kharkiv in the northeast of the country, close to the border with Russia.

— David Brennan, ABC News, 30 July 2026
The impending impact, scientists say, offers a chance to analyze the crater and plume of dust stretching several miles above the surface.

— Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 30 July 2026

Definition of stretching

Verb

Dumarce in 2019 was arrested by the Sacramento Police Department on suspicion of exposing himself to and then attempting to kidnap a 13-year-old girl outside of a Meadowview elementary school, according to previous Sacramento Bee reporting.

— Margaret Baker, Sacbee.com, 31 July 2026
Miller has accused his ex-wife of attempting to frame him for abuse of her and their child.

— Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 31 July 2026

Definition of attempting

Adjective

The city's local Democratic lawmakers claim that the tough-on-crime policies only temporarily reduced crime while troop presence was at its peak.

— ABC News, ABC News, 31 July 2026
Lopez and multiple bullpen arms got out of tough jams to limit the Red Sox 16 baserunners across the first nine innings to just two runs, only one earned.

— Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 30 July 2026

Definition of tough

Verb

Nvidia’s chips are essential to AI data centers, pushing its business to stratospheric heights.

— Lisa Eadicicco, CNN Money, 31 July 2026
Chawinga is busy pushing Black excellence for her own country, Malawi, by leading the nation’s women’s soccer team in its Women’s Africa Cup of Nations debut.

— PJ Green July 30, Kansas City Star, 30 July 2026

Definition of pushing

Verb

But behind the scenes, non-profit organizations are striving to build new housing and safeguard existing residential stock through partnerships, systems and programs intended to hammer away at shortages of attainable residential units.

— Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
There was so much striving, by individuals and their teams, striving for the World Cup trophy and striving against every structural indecency that conspired to compromise the game’s integrity.

— Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 20 July 2026

Definition of striving

Adjective

But just as staggering was one of the overnight lows, which dipped to only a searing 97 degrees F (36 degrees C)—a tie for the hottest low that the city’s ever seen, a record first set just three years ago.

— Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 30 July 2026
But another breakdown, an hour west of Seligman, stranded me in the searing heat.

— New York Times, New York Times, 28 July 2026

Definition of searing

Verb

Low river levels are disrupting cargo transport, and water scarcity is straining hydropower-dependent regions.

— Sanidhya Sharma, Scientific American, 24 July 2026
Darling-Hammond described a system straining to keep pace with a changing economy, in which students increasingly move in and out of college and blend academic coursework with hands-on career training.

— Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026

Definition of straining

Cite this Entry

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“Trying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trying. Accessed 1 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of trying

adjective

verb

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