Dictionary

rack one's brain en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio

Etymology

Combination of rack (“medieval torture method”), and brain, thus meaning “to cause the mind extreme discomfort”. Variants include rack one's wit (1583) and rack one's memory, as well as cudgel one's brain / cudgel one's brains.

Meanings

1. (figuratively) To struggle to think of or remember something.
   • I have been racking my brain all day trying to think of a birthday present for her.
   • Let’s face it – math isn’t for everyone. If you’re done racking your brains over a question based on quadratic equations, differential calculus, or even lengthy word problems, and can’t for the life of you figure out what’s what, then perhaps it’s time you let ChatGPT take up the role of a home tutor. 2023 January 19, Zohaib Ahmed, “Here’s how ChatGPT can help you deal with boring tasks so you can focus on things that matter”, in The Indian Express:

Forms

Relateds

beat one's brains

Translations (28)

fr se creuser les méninges (struggle to think of something) · fi miettiä päänsä puhki (struggle to think of something) · ru лома́ть го́лову (struggle to think of something) · it spremersi le meningi (struggle to think of something) · pl zachodzić w głowę (struggle to think of something) · pt quebrar a cabeça (struggle to think of something) · it scervellarsi (struggle to think of something) · pl łamać sobie głowę (struggle to think of something) · fr se creuser la cervelle (struggle to think of something) · cmn 絞盡腦汁 /绞尽脑汁 (struggle to think of something) · wa si tuzer moirt (struggle to think of something) · wa si casser l' tiesse (struggle to think of something) · cs lámat si hlavu (struggle to think of something) · hu töri a fejét (struggle to think of something) · is brjóta heilann (struggle to think of something) · fr se casser la tête (struggle to think of something) · ca escalfar-se el cap (struggle to think of something) · nl zich suf piekeren (struggle to think of something) · tr kafa patlatmak (struggle to think of something) · cy crafu'ch pen (struggle to think of something) · fr se creuser la tête (struggle to think of something) · it lambiccarsi il cervello (struggle to think of something) · eo cerbumi (struggle to think of something) · es romperse la cabeza (struggle to think of something) · ja 脳漿を絞る (struggle to think of something) · es devanarse los sesos (struggle to think of something) · de sich den Kopf zerbrechen (struggle to think of something) · it arrovellarsi (struggle to think of something)