1
as in try
an effort to do or accomplish something
it took several attempts before we made good ice cream with an old-fashioned hand-cranked ice cream freezer
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in attack
the act or action of setting upon with force or violence
several attempts on the life of the country's chief drug enforcement official
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to try
to make an effort to do
after attempting—and failing—to start the lawn mower on my own, I finally succeeded with a neighbor's help don't even attempt walking on your broken foot
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of attempt
Carmel Dagan, Variety, 28 Feb. 2025
Miguel’s third successful 3-pointer in as many attempts gave them an 18-13 lead, and a pair of free throws by Rice inflated that advantage to 20-14.
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 17 Feb. 2025
Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2025
Shares of oil and gas giant Antero Resources (AR) are attempting a bounce off four consecutive daily losses and last week’s 4.2% drop, last seen up 0.6% to trade at $37.59.
—Schaeffer's Investment Research, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for attempt
Noun
Wambaugh reportedly supervised production of the film, and the attempt to communicate all of the case’s complexities was born of his desire for realism, but without the simple, appealing narrative structure that simplifying the details would have allowed.
—Carmel Dagan, Variety, 28 Feb. 2025
Miguel’s third successful 3-pointer in as many attempts gave them an 18-13 lead, and a pair of free throws by Rice inflated that advantage to 20-14.
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 17 Feb. 2025
Verb
And the charge Jones drew on Bogdan Bogdanović with 1:53 remaining set the table for the Bulls to attempt — and, ultimately, fail — to pull off the upset win.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2025
Shares of oil and gas giant Antero Resources (AR) are attempting a bounce off four consecutive daily losses and last week’s 4.2% drop, last seen up 0.6% to trade at $37.59.
—Schaeffer's Investment Research, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for attempt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attempt
Noun
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These serve the same confidence-building/try without risk approach as plug-in hybrid vehicles.—
Jamie Gold,
Forbes,
1 Mar. 2025
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Give these no-fuss clogs and sneakers from Amazon a try — starting at just $24.—
Nicol Natale,
People.com,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
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According to the Lee County Sheriff's Office, about 5:15 p.m. Monday, deputies responded to the area's Valley community for a report of a dog attack.—
Natalie Neysa Alund,
USA TODAY,
1 Mar. 2025
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Hamas started the war with its Oct. 7, 2023, attack that left 1,200 dead in Israel, mostly civilians, and took some 250 hostage.—
Samy Magdy and David Rising,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Rogers cared deeply about the children his show touched, striving to spread kindness and make the world a better place.—
Makena Gera,
People.com,
27 Feb. 2025
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If errors are made, they will be flagged and corrected as needed, while striving to do what's best for the American people.—
Gabrielle Emanuel,
NPR,
27 Feb. 2025
Noun
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When asked a tough question, take a stab at answering instead of playing it safe.—
Ira Wolfe,
Forbes,
26 Feb. 2025
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According to the Riverside Press-Enterprise, Olejniczak was found dead in his apartment with stab wounds to his chest.—
Christian Martinez,
The Mercury News,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Military bloggers from both sides say Ukraine is on the back foot, while Ukraine’s army says Russian forces used a gas pipeline to launch a surprise raid in one area.—
Maria Kostenko, Christian Edwards and Sophie Tanno,
CNN,
9 Mar. 2025
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In separate raids on Crimean anchorages in February, May and June 2024, the USVs sank a corvette, a landing ship, a patrol boat and a tugboat.—
David Axe,
Forbes,
9 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
The strikes began before Trump entered Congress and continued into the morning, indicated by Ukrainian air force alerts.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
5 Mar. 2025
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The majority of these strikes happen during the summer, causing around 20 fatalities each year, according to the NWS.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Beijing has also softened its regulatory assault on Chinese technology companies and the property sector.—
Jacky Wong,
WSJ,
6 Feb. 2023
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Zelenskyy has warned for weeks that Moscow aims to step up its assault after about two months of virtual stalemate along the front line that stretches across the south and east.—
Reuters,
NBC News,
31 Jan. 2023
Noun
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Change is a constant in most companies, but the ongoing onslaught of organizational change initiatives is creating frustration, exhaustion and burnout for many employees.—
Elizabeth Baskin,
Forbes,
26 Feb. 2025
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The Mecha Break servers completely failed to withstand the onslaught of testers, crashing under the pressure of players trying to log on and find matches, especially in China.—
Oliver Brandt,
Newsweek,
24 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Attempt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attempt. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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