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Glite Dictionary
at pains

at pains

2 7.3
Trying very hard to make something clear and avoid mistakes
  • idiom
  • Formal
translation icon : esforzándose
  • The teacher was at pains to ensure that all students understood the assignment.
  • at pains to emphasize
  • at pains to show
  • at pains to make

Examples

  • As Dante leaves the surface of the earth and begins his journey into space, he is at pains to describe his experience while respecting the constraints of the science of his time.

    Academic text (2011)

  • And the prince is clearly at pains to deny that he in any way resembles such a rumor-filled pipe.

    Academic text (1994)

  • Always the game is simple, as he is at pains to point out.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Now, that's just one view, as Chris was at pains to stress.

  • And Saeed is at pains to make a distinction, therefore, between truth and value.

  • Indeed, and the Lord Chamberlain was at pains to stress that the spirit of the occasion will be quite different.

    The Queen (2006)

  • Why should this be the case when Stoker is at pains to suggest an alternative reading for her infection?

    Academic text (2007)

  • But Bourriaud is at pains to distance contemporary work from that of previous generations.

    Academic text (2004)

  • Lord Jersey had been at pains to explain this tactical lapse to her.

    Academic text (1998)

  • There were 149 lots, and the catalog was at pains to stress how certain items had previously been exhibited at Manchester.

    Academic text (2012)

Synonyms

to take pains
vsat pains
8 5.8

Try hard and be careful when doing something

is similar but suggests slightly less emphasis on detail and care
to take great pains
vsat pains
  • Formal
6 5.2

Make a lot of effort and be careful about small details

focuses on careful detailed effort to avoid mistakes rather than general effort
to be at pains
vsat pains
  • Formal
3 7.7

To try very hard to do something carefully

is the fixed phrase form of that same careful effort state
to go through all that trouble
vsat pains
3 6.0

To do a lot of extra work or face problems for a small thing

refers to careful effort to prevent mistakes not necessarily facing hardship

Antonyms

carelessly
20 1.0

In a way that you do something without thinking or paying attention

negligently
4 6.6

In a careless way without proper care or attention

How Much Effort

to bend over backwards
  • Informal
24 4.9
at pains
  • Formal
2 7.3
to try
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

at pains positive

Morphology

at + pains

The noun 'pains' can mean 'careful effort', so combining it with the locative preposition 'at' yields the sense 'in a state of making effort', which provides a clear link to the MWE meaning. However, the fixed phrase 'at pains (to ...)' is somewhat formal and conventionalized, so its exact use and nuance may not be fully predictable to a B1 learner without exposure.

Etymology

At pains comes from the older idea of 'taking pains', imagining someone working so hard it hurts, with the word pains meaning effort or trouble. That's why if you are at pains to explain something you are 'making a great effort' to be clear.