travail
11
8.8
- noun
- /trəˈveɪl/
- Literature
:
penuria
- The author's latest book details the travail of the early pioneers who struggled to build a new life in the wilderness.
- economic travails
- travails of transition
So he says the soul cannot enjoy it if one man is, as it were, in travail for many people.
- So he says the soul cannot enjoy it if one man is, as it were, in travail for many people.
- And then I realized it was the travails of Odysseus trying to get back to Ithaca after the Trojan War.
Examples
-
We all have our tales of triumph and travail, we collectors.
Fiction book (1993) -
Fundamentalism was born of the travail of people who craved absolute authority.
Academic text (2006) -
When Mother began her travail with Elizabeth, I went there to get away from the sound of her pain.
Fiction book (1996) -
I have experienced many of these travails, and it just never gets any easier.
Blog text (16) -
Indeed, in some cases, these travails have even led to military conflict.
Academic text (2000) -
There was nothing he could say that would answer Lambert's real question or ease the travail inside him.
Fiction book (1993) -
China is a society that will undergo many travails in its long march toward development.
Academic text (1991) -
Nehemiah is the narrative of the renewal of the covenant after a time of travail.
Academic text (2006) -
Instead, the triumphs and travails of the Aquino regime have been a product of indigenous culture and behavior.
Academic text (1991) -
After years of travail and setbacks, she finally completed her degree in engineering.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Use of physical or mental energy to try to do something
41
2.3
Hard work that needs a lot of effort
23
5.0
Strong physical or mental effort that makes you tired
16
5.8
Hard, continuous work that uses a lot of physical effort
7
4.1
A lot of hard work with your hands and arms to clean or shine things
Antonyms
How Hard
Surface Forms
Etymology
Travail comes from the old Latin word tripalium, which meant 'three stakes' and was a cruel tool used to make people suffer. It later became the French verb travailler, 'to work painfully', so a travail is now a long, hard, or painful task.