strain (n.)

  1. (physics) deformation of a physical body under the action of applied forces

  2. an intense or violent exertion

    [ Syn: straining ]

  3. the act of singing; with a shout and a song they marched up to the gates

    [ Syn: song ]

  4. difficulty that causes worry or emotional tension; she endured the stresses and strains of life; he presided over the economy during the period of the greatest stress and danger- R.J.Samuelson

    [ Syn: stress ]

  5. a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence; she was humming an air from Beethoven

    [ Syn: tune , melody , air , melodic line , line , melodic phrase ]

  6. (psychology) nervousness resulting from mental stress; his responsibilities were a constant strain; the mental strain of staying alert hour after hour was too much for him

    [ Syn: mental strain , nervous strain ]

  7. a special variety of domesticated animals within a species; he experimented on a particular breed of white rats; he created a new strain of sheep

    [ Syn: breed , breed , stock , stock ]

  8. (biology) a group of organisms within a species that differ in trivial ways from similar groups; a new strain of microorganisms

    [ Syn: form , variant , var. ]

  9. injury to a muscle (often caused by overuse); results in swelling and pain

  10. the general meaning or substance of an utterance; although I disagreed with him I could follow the tenor of his argument

    [ Syn: tenor ]

  11. an effortful attempt to attain a goal

    [ Syn: striving , nisus , pains ]

    strain (v.)

  1. to exert much effort or energy; straining our ears to hear

    [ Syn: strive , reach ]

  2. test the limits of; You are trying my patience!

    [ Syn: try , stress ]

  3. use to the utmost; exert vigorously or to full capacity; He really extended himself when he climbed Kilimanjaro; Dont strain your mind too much

    [ Syn: extend ]

  4. separate by passing through a sieve or other straining device to separate out coarser elements; sift the flour

    [ Syn: sift , sieve ]

  5. cause to be tense and uneasy or nervous or anxious; he got a phone call from his lawyer that tensed him up

    [ Syn: tense , tense , tense up , tense up ]

  6. become stretched or tense or taut; the bodybuilders neck muscles tensed; the rope strained when the weight was attached

    [ Syn: tense ]

  7. remove by passing through a filter; filter out the impurities

    [ Syn: filter , filtrate , separate out , filter out ]

  8. rub through a strainer or process in an electric blender; puree the vegetables for the baby

    [ Syn: puree ]

  9. alter the shape of (something) by stress; His body was deformed by leprosy

    [ Syn: deform , distort ]

The dictionary is based on the WordNet Electronic Lexical Database.
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2011 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.