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strain

noun

(physics) deformation of a physical body under the action of applied forces
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
Synonyms: stress
a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence; "she was humming an air from Beethoven"
Synonyms: air, line, melodic line, melodic phrase, melody, tune
(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"
Synonyms: mental strain, nervous strain
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"
Synonyms: breed, stock
(biology) a group of organisms within a species that differ in trivial ways from similar groups; "a new strain of microorganisms"
Synonyms: form, var., variant
a lineage or race of people
Synonyms: breed
injury to a muscle (often caused by overuse); results in swelling and pain
pervading note of an utterance; "I could follow the general tenor of his argument"
Synonyms: tenor
an effortful attempt to attain a goal
Synonyms: nisus, pains, striving
an intense or violent exertion
Synonyms: straining
the act of singing; "with a shout and a song they marched up to the gates"
Synonyms: song

verb

to exert much effort or energy; "straining our ears to hear"
Synonyms: reach, strive
test the limits of; "You are trying my patience!"
Synonyms: stress, try
use to the utmost; exert vigorously or to full capacity; "He really extended himself when he climbed Kilimanjaro"; "Don''t strain your mind too much"
Synonyms: extend
separate by passing through a sieve or other straining device to separate out coarser elements; "sift the flour"
Synonyms: sieve, sift
make tense and uneasy or nervous or anxious;
Synonyms: tense, tense up Antonyms: relax, unstrain, unlax, loosen up, unwind, make relaxed, relax, unstrain, unlax, loosen up, unwind, make relaxed
stretch or force to the limit; "strain the rope"
Synonyms: tense
remove by passing through a filter; "filter out the impurities"
Synonyms: filter, filter out, filtrate, separate out
rub through a strainer or process in an electric blender; "puree the vegetables for the baby"
Synonyms: puree
alter the shape of (something) by stress; "His body was deformed by leprosy"
Synonyms: deform, distort