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Strain

streɪn

Strain definitions
verb
strain strained straining strains
  1. force (a part of one's body or oneself) to make an unusually great effort

    "I stopped and listened, straining my ears for any sound"

    • make an unusually great effort

      "his voice was so quiet that I had to strain to hear it"

    • injure (a limb, muscle, or organ) by overexerting it

      "on cold days you are more likely to strain a muscle"

    • make severe or excessive demands on

      "he strained her tolerance to the limit"

    • pull or push forcibly at something

      "the bear strained at the chain around its neck"

    • stretch (something) tightly

      "the barbed wire fence was strained to posts six feet high"

    • embrace (someone) tightly

      "she strained the infant to her bosom again"

  2. pour (a mainly liquid substance) through a porous or perforated device or material in order to separate out any solid matter

    "strain the custard into a bowl"

    • cause liquid to drain off (food which has been boiled, soaked, or canned) by using a porous or perforated device

      "she turned to the sink to strain the noodles"

    • drain (liquid) off food by using a porous or perforated device

      "strain off the surplus fat"

noun
strain strains
  1. a force tending to pull or stretch something to an extreme or damaging degree

    "the usual type of chair puts an enormous strain on the spine"

    • an injury to a part of the body caused by overexertion

      "he has a slight groin strain"

    • the magnitude of a deformation, equal to the change in the dimension of a deformed object divided by its original dimension
  2. a severe or excessive demand on the strength, resources, or abilities of someone or something

    "the accusations put a strain on relations between the two countries"

    • a state of tension or exhaustion resulting from severe demands on one's strength or resources

      "the telltale signs of nervous strain"

  3. the sound of a piece of music

    "the distant strains of the brass band grew louder"