5 → see also report structure
strug|gle ◆◆◇ /strʌ g ə l/ (struggles , struggling , struggled )
1 VERB If you struggle to do something, you try hard to do it, even though other people or things may be making it difficult for you to succeed. □ [V prep] They had to struggle against all kinds of adversity. □ [V to-inf] Those who have lost their jobs struggle to pay their supermarket bills. [Also V ]
2 N‑VAR [N to-inf] A struggle is a long and difficult attempt to achieve something such as freedom or political rights. □ [+ for ] Life became a struggle for survival. □ …a young lad's struggle to support his poverty-stricken family. □ [+ with ] He is currently locked in a power struggle with his Prime Minister.
3 VERB If you struggle when you are being held, you twist, kick, and move violently in order to get free. □ [V ] I struggled, but he was a tall man, well-built.
4 VERB If two people struggle with each other, they fight. □ [V ] She screamed at him to 'stop it' as they struggled on the ground. □ [V + with ] There were signs that she struggled with her attacker. ● N‑COUNT Struggle is also a noun. □ He died in a struggle with prison officers.
5 VERB If you struggle to move yourself or to move a heavy object, you try to do it, but it is difficult. □ [V to-inf] I could see the young boy struggling to free himself. □ [V prep] I struggled with my bags, desperately looking for a porter.
6 VERB [only cont] If a person or organization is struggling , they are likely to fail in what they are doing, even though they might be trying very hard. □ [V to-inf] The company is struggling to find buyers for its new product. □ [V prep] One in five young adults was struggling with everyday mathematics. □ [V ] By the 1960s, many shipyards were struggling.
7 N‑SING An action or activity that is a struggle is very difficult to do. □ Losing weight was a terrible struggle.
▸ struggle on PHRASAL VERB If you struggle on , you continue doing something rather than stopping, even though it is difficult. □ [V P ] Why should I struggle on to please my parents? □ [V P + with ] The rest of the world struggles on with its perpetual problems, poverty and debt. SYNONYMS struggle VERB 1
strive: He strives hard to keep himself very fit.
strain: I had to strain to hear.
battle: He was battling against the wind and rain.
endeavour: They are endeavouring to protect trade union rights. NOUN 2
effort: With an effort she contained her irritation.
battle: …the eternal battle between good and evil in the world.
strain: I sometimes find it a strain to be responsible for the mortgage.
strum /strʌ m/ (strums , strumming , strummed ) VERB If you strum a stringed instrument such as a guitar, you play it by moving your fingers backwards and forwards across the strings. □ [V n] In the corner, one youth sat alone, softly strumming a guitar. □ [V prep/adv] Vaska strummed away on his guitar. ● N‑SING Strum is also a noun. □ [+ of ] A little while later, I heard the strum of my father's guitar as he began to sing.
strung /strʌ ŋ/ Strung is the past tense and past participle of string .
stru ng ou t
1 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If things are strung out somewhere, they are spread out in a line. □ Buildings were strung out on the north side of the river.
2 ADJ [v-link ADJ ] If someone is strung out on drugs, they are heavily affected by drugs. [INFORMAL ] □ [+ on ] He was permanently strung out on heroin.
strut /strʌ t/ (struts , strutting , strutted )
1 VERB Someone who struts walks in a proud way, with their head held high and their chest out, as if they are very important. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ [V prep/adv] He struts around town like he owns the place.
2 N‑COUNT A strut is a piece of wood or metal which holds the weight of other pieces in a building or other structure. □ …the struts of a suspension bridge.
strych|nine /str I kniːn, [AM ] -na I n/ N‑UNCOUNT Strychnine is a very poisonous drug which is sometimes used in very small amounts as a medicine.
stub /stʌ b/ (stubs , stubbing , stubbed )
1 N‑COUNT The stub of a cigarette or a pencil is the last short piece of it which remains when the rest has been used. □ [+ of ] He pulled the stub of a pencil from behind his ear. □ …an ashtray of cigarette stubs.
2 N‑COUNT [usu n N ] A ticket stub is the part that you keep when you go in to watch a performance. □ She keeps all her gig ticket stubs at home in a frame.
3 N‑COUNT [usu n N ] A cheque stub is the small part that you keep as a record of what you have paid.
4 VERB If you stub your toe , you hurt it by accidentally kicking something. □ [V n] I stubbed my toes against a table leg.
▸ stub out PHRASAL VERB When someone stubs out a cigarette, they put it out by pressing it against something hard. □ [V P n] Signs across the entrances warn all visitors to stub out their cigarettes. [Also V n P ]
stub|ble /stʌ b ə l/
1 N‑UNCOUNT Stubble is the short stalks which are left standing in fields after corn or wheat has been cut. □ The stubble was burning in the fields.