endeavor
1en·deav·or
verb \in-ˈde-vər\en·deav·oreden·deav·or·ing \-v(ə-)riŋ\
Definition of ENDEAVOR
transitive verb
1
archaic : to strive to achieve or reach
2
: to attempt (as the fulfillment of an obligation) by exertion of effort <endeavors to finish the race>
intransitive verb
: to work with set purpose
See Examples of ENDEAVOR
- The school endeavors to teach students to be good citizens.
- They endeavored to create a government that truly serves its people.
- As urbanization advanced, it swept away the distinctive physical and social characteristics of the culture of the past, substituting undifferentiated built environments and standardized patterns of dress and behavior. Hand-camera users endeavored to reaffirm individuality and arrest time in the face of the encroaching depersonalization of existence. —Naomi Rosenblum, A World History of Photography, 1989
- At some time in their careers, most good historians itch to write a history of the world, endeavor to discover what makes humanity the most destructive and creative of species. —Paul Johnson, New York Times Book Review, 7 Apr. 1985
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Origin of ENDEAVOR
Middle English endeveren to exert oneself, from en- + dever duty — more at devoir
First Known Use: 15th century
Related to ENDEAVOR
Related Words: apply (oneself), buckle (down), dig in, hammer (away), knuckle down, pitch in; attack, drive; essay, try; exercise, exert, overexert, overwork; eke out, grind (out), put out, scrabble, scratch; trudge, wade
Near Antonyms: break, ease (up), let up, slacken; bum, chill, dally, dillydally, footle, goldbrick, goof (off), hack (around), hang (around or out), idle, laze, loaf, lounge, shirk, slack (off), veg out; bask, loll, relax, repose, rest, unwind; dabble, doodle, fool around, fribble, goof (around), hang, hang about [British], mess around, monkey (around), play, potter (around), putter (around), trifle
See Synonym Discussion at attempt
Rhymes with ENDEAVOR
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