[syn: campaign, cause, crusade, drive, movement, effort]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Effort \Ef"fort\, n. [F. effort, OF. esfort, for esfors, esforz,
fr. esforcier. See Efforce.]
1. 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.
[1913 Webster]
We prize the stronger effort of his power. --Pope.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Mech.) A force acting on a body in the direction of its
motion. --Rankine.
Syn: Endeavor; exertion; struggle; strain; straining;
attempt; trial; essay. See Attempt.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Effort \Ef"fort\, v. t.
To stimulate. [Obs.] "He efforted his spirits." --Fuller.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
effort
n 1: 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" [syn: attempt, effort, endeavor,
endeavour, try]
2: use of physical or mental energy; hard work; "he got an A for
effort"; "they managed only with great exertion" [syn:
effort, elbow grease, exertion, travail, sweat]
3: a notable achievement; "he performed a great feat"; "the book
was her finest effort" [syn: feat, effort, exploit]
4: 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" [syn: campaign, cause,
crusade, drive, movement, effort]
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:
137 Moby Thesaurus words for "effort":
accomplished fact, accomplishment, achievement, act, acta, action,
ad hoc measure, adventure, affair, answer, application, approach,
artifice, assay, attainment, attempt, bid, blow, business, chore,
commitment, contract, contrivance, countermove, coup,
course of action, crack, creation, deal, dealings, deed, demarche,
determination, device, dodge, doing, doings, elbow grease,
endeavor, energy, engagement, enterprise, essay, exertion,
expedient, experiment, exploit, fait accompli, feat, fling, force,
gambit, gest, gimmick, go, hand, handiwork, hard pull,
improvisation, job, jury-rig, jury-rigged expedient, labor,
last expedient, last resort, last shift, lick, long pull,
makeshift, maneuver, means, measure, might, might and main, move,
muscle, nerve and sinew, obligation, offer, operation, overt act,
pains, passage, performance, pis aller, plan, power, proceeding,
production, program, project, proposition, puissance, res gestae,
resolution, resort, resource, shake-up, shift, shot, solution,
stab, step, stopgap, strain, stratagem, striving, stroke,
stroke of policy, strong bid, struggle, stunt, tactic, task,
temporary expedient, tentative, thing, thing done, toil,
tour de force, transaction, travail, trial, trial and error, trick,
trouble, trump, try, turn, undertaking, venture, whack, while,
work, working hypothesis, working proposition, works