Dictionary

trying en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• (US) audio
• /ˈtɹaɪ.ɪŋ/
• /ˈtɹɑjɪŋ/ (British, Southern, Standard)

Etymology

From try + -ing.

Meanings

1. Difficult to endure; arduous.
   • "Do you not find," he said, "that with your short sight it is a little trying to do so much typewriting?" 1891 [September], A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Adventure III.—A Case of Identity.”, in Geo[rge] Newnes, editor, The Strand Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly, volume II (July to December), number [9], London: […], page 249, column 2:
   • Troutbeck is a tiny village midway between Penrith and Keswick in a very sparsely populated part of Cumberland, and it used to be said by facetious travellers that the reason why it ever had a station at all was to give the engine a rest after it had struggled up the long and trying incline from Threlkeld. 1951 October, “Notes and News: The Harmonium at Troutbeck”, in Railway Magazine, page 709:
   • Tryin’ times, what the world is talkin’ about / You got confusion all over the land, yeah 1969, Donny Hathaway, Leroy Hutson, “Tryin’ Times”, in First Take, performed by Roberta Flack:
2. Irritating, stressful or bothersome.

Forms

Deriveds

tryingness · tryingly

Translations (23)

es desafiador (Difficult to endure; arduous) · it impegnativo (Difficult to endure; arduous) · hi प्रयासरत (Difficult to endure; arduous) · es molestoso (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · fi raskas (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · fi raskas (Difficult to endure; arduous) · fr éprouvant (Difficult to endure; arduous) · es irritante (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · fi vaivalloinen (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · fi rasittava (Difficult to endure; arduous) · bg мъчителен (Difficult to endure; arduous) · sv ansträngande (Difficult to endure; arduous) · it difficile (Difficult to endure; arduous) · sv påfrestande (Difficult to endure; arduous) · es riguroso (Difficult to endure; arduous) · it arduo (Difficult to endure; arduous) · bg притеснителен (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · bg уморителен (Difficult to endure; arduous) · es arduo (Difficult to endure; arduous) · sv krävande (Difficult to endure; arduous) · it irritante (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · es hostigoso (irritating, stressful or bothersome) · fi rasittava (irritating, stressful or bothersome)

trying en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (US) audio
• /ˈtɹaɪ.ɪŋ/
• /ˈtɹɑjɪŋ/ (British, Southern, Standard)

Etymology

From try + -ing.

Meanings

1. The act by which one tries something; an attempt.
   • When I write with others, the pauses and manyfold attempts to get at an idea mirror the cadence of a conversation or the tryings of finding a word that evades the tongue. That searching is such a beautiful thing. 2021, William Guss, gilwus:
   • In a variety of places, O'Shaughnessy argues that there is an internal relation between trying and the events that tryings produce. For example, he argues that tryings are not independently specifiable except as would-be causes of physical events. 2006, Andrew Sneddon, Action and Responsibility, page 145:

Forms

trying en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (US) audio
• /ˈtɹaɪ.ɪŋ/
• /ˈtɹɑjɪŋ/ (British, Southern, Standard)

Etymology

From try + -ing.

Meanings

1. (form-of, gerund, participle, present) present participle and gerund of try
   form of try