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to exert

to exert

33 4.1
Make a strong physical or mental effort
  • verb
  • /ɪɡˈzɜrt/
translation icon : esforzarse
  • And then every man is free to exert himself to do good or not.
  • exert effort
  • exert energy
  • exert tremendous effort

When you were trying to exert willpower, there is a struggle.

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Examples

  • During the competition, the athlete will exert all his strength to secure a victory.

  • From now on, please try not to exert yourself, okay?

  • My doctor told me not to exert myself.

  • With the pressure to win, athletes will exert an extra amount of effort to win.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Now it had taken him great mental effort, exerted over many hours, just to remember that much.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • When you were trying to exert willpower, there is a struggle.

  • Thus, the U.S. market once again began to exert itself forcibly on global oil pricing.

    Academic text (1999)
  • The rapidly growing Internet is exerting a profound influence on many aspects of contemporary life.

    Academic text (1999)
  • To win the race, she had to exert herself and push through the fatigue.

  • He decided to exert great focus while studying for his final exams.

Synonyms

to strain
vsto exert
87 4.2

To use a lot of effort to do something difficult

is strong effort but may not always push things to their limit
to expend
vsto exert
50 5.0

To use money, time, or energy for a purpose

is making strenuous effort rather than simply spending resources
to put forth
vsto exert
45 4.1

To try hard to do something

is similar but often implies slightly more strenuous or forceful effort
to apply oneself to
vsto exert
41 4.2

To work hard and focus on a task

is active strenuous effort rather than steady focused concentration
to extend
vsto exert
15 3.5

To use all your energy or skill to try to do something

is strong effort but does not always mean reaching full capacity
7 5.1

Make a person or thing work as hard as possible until they cannot keep going

is strenuous action but not always about testing maximum capacity
to put out
vsto exert
3 5.0

Make a lot of effort to do something

is about effort but can be less focused on continuous maximal strain
to push it to the limit
vsto exert
  • Informal
1 7.2

Use all your energy and take big risks to test your skill

is intense effort but does not always involve risk or full resource use
to extend oneself
vsto exert
1 6.9

To make a big effort beyond your usual limits

is general strenuous effort rather than specifically going beyond usual limits

Antonyms

1.0

To feel less nervous and more calm

816 1.0

To stop activity to relax or sleep and get energy back

How Hard

to overexert
4 6.5
to strain
87 4.2
to exert
33 4.1
work
1.0
to try
1.0

Surface Forms

exert infinitive
exerted past
exerted past participle
exerting present participle
exerts third person singular

Etymology

Exert comes from the Latin parts ex- 'out' and -ert, from a root that meant 'to put or stretch forward', so to exert yourself is to 'put out' your strength or energy and make a strong effort.