What does effort mean?

Definitions for effort
ˈɛf ərtef·fort

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word effort.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. attempt, effort, endeavor, endeavour, trynoun

    earnest and conscientious activity intended to do or accomplish something

    "made an effort to cover all the reading material"; "wished him luck in his endeavor"; "she gave it a good try"

  2. effort, elbow grease, exertion, travail, sweatnoun

    use of physical or mental energy; hard work

    "he got an A for effort"; "they managed only with great exertion"

  3. feat, effort, exploitnoun

    a notable achievement

    "he performed a great feat"; "the book was her finest effort"

  4. campaign, cause, crusade, drive, movement, effortnoun

    a series of actions advancing a principle or tending toward a particular end

    "he supported populist campaigns"; "they worked in the cause of world peace"; "the team was ready for a drive toward the pennant"; "the movement to end slavery"; "contributed to the war effort"

Wiktionary

  1. effortnoun

    The amount of work involved in performing an activity; exertion.

    It took a lot of effort to find a decent-sized, fully-furnished apartment withing walking distance of the office.

  2. effortnoun

    An endeavour.

    Although he didn't win any medals, Johnson's effort at the Olympics won over many fans.

  3. effortverb

    To make an effort.

  4. effortverb

    To stimulate.

    He efforted his spirits. uE000127628uE001 Fuller.

  5. Etymology: From effort, from esfort, deverbal noun from esforcier, from *exfortiare, from ex + fortis

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Effortnoun

    Struggle; laborious endeavour.

    Etymology: effort, French.

    If, after having gained victories, we had made the same efforts as if we had lost them, France could not have withstood us. Joseph Addison, on the State of the War.

    Though the same sun, with all diffusive rays,
    Blush in the rose, and in the diamond blaze,
    We prize the stronger effort of his pow’r,
    And always set the gem above the flow’r. Alexander Pope, Epist. 1.

ChatGPT

  1. effort

    Effort refers to the physical or mental energy that is exerted to achieve something. It often involves hard work, determination, or striving towards a particular goal or task. It can also mean the force applied to perform a particular action or move an object.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Effortnoun

    an exertion of strength or power, whether physical or mental, in performing an act or aiming at an object; more or less strenuous endeavor; struggle directed to the accomplishment of an object; as, an effort to scale a wall

  2. Effortnoun

    a force acting on a body in the direction of its motion

  3. Effortverb

    to stimulate

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Effort

    ef′fort, n. a putting forth of strength: attempt: struggle.—adj. Ef′fortless, making no effort: passive. [Fr.,—L. ex, out, fortis, strong.]

Editors Contribution

  1. effort

    To use energy for a specific purpose.

    She always made a fantastic effort and focused, she was always achieving remarkable things and always acknowledged the team who supported her.


    Submitted by MaryC on February 12, 2020  

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'effort' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #1327

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'effort' in Written Corpus Frequency: #1840

  3. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'effort' in Nouns Frequency: #320

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

How to pronounce effort?

How to say effort in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of effort in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of effort in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of effort in a Sentence

  1. Ross MacDonald:

    We've seen a dramatic change, the most important intervention was a concerted effort at depopulation, which allowed us, I think, to do much better than many systems around the country despite having a broader epidemic that was more severe than anywhere in the country.

  2. Raymond Lee:

    You spend a lot of effort in onboarding and treating people well. But when it comes to offboarding it’s almost an afterthought, you want your employees who are exiting to say, ‘I really enjoyed the years I’ve given to the organization.

  3. Leader McConnell:

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's delayed this so the architects of the failed House process can reach over into the The Senate and dictate our process as well, house Democrats are treating impeachment like a political toy — like a political toy, treating their own effort to remove our commander-in-chief like a frivolous game.

  4. Andy Reid:

    I thought they played with great emotion and effort, vic does a heck of a job.

  5. Nancy Mace:

    Working to protect the Constitution and due process has been a cornerstone of my work in Congress. Speaker Kevin McCarthy made his commitment today that I will lead the effort to amend the House Rules to provide due process and prevent the politicizing of committee removals in the future.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

effort#1#1992#10000

Translations for effort

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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"effort." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 23 Jan. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/effort>.

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    not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy; impenetrable to sight
    A alternate
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