Webster's English Dictionary

Enter the word to look up:

strain

1. strain \'stra-n\ n [ME streen progeny, lineage, fr. OE stre-on gain, 
   acquisition; a]kin to OHG gistriuni gain, L struere to heap up - more at 
   STRUCTURE 1a: LINEAGE, ANCESTRY  1b: a group of presumed common ancestry 
   with clear-cut physiological but us u. not morphological distinctions {a 
   high-yielding ~ of winter wheat}; broadly : a specified infraspecific group 
   (as a stock, line, or ecotype) 1c: KIND, SORT  2a: inherited or inherent 
   character, quality, or disposition {a ~ o f madness in the family} 2b: 
   TRACE, STREAK {a ~ of fanaticism}  3a: TUNE, AIR  3b: a passage of verbal 
   or musical expression  3c: a stream or outburst of forceful or impassioned 
   speech  4a: the tenor, pervading note, burden, or tone of an utterance (as 
   a song o r speech) or of a course of action or conduct 4b: MOOD, TEMPER 
2. strain vb [ME strainen, fr. MF estraindre, fr. L stringere to bind or 
   d]raw tight, press together; akin to Gk strang-, stranx drop squeezed out, 
   strangale- halter 1a: to draw tight : cause to clasp firmly  1b: to stretch 
   to maximum extension and tautness  2a: to exert (as oneself) to the utmost  
   2b: to injure by overuse, misuse, or excessive pressure {~ed  his heart by 
   overwork} 2c: to cause a change of form or size in (a body) by application 
   of extern al force 3: to squeeze or clasp tightly : as  3a: HUG  3b: 
   CONSTRICT  4a: FILTER  4b: to remove by straining {~ lumps out of the 
   gravy}  5: to stretch beyond a proper limit  obs  6: to squeeze out : 
   EXTORT  1a: to make violent efforts : STRIVE  1b: to sustain a strain, 
   wrench, or distortion  2: to pass through or as if through a strainer {the 
   liquid ~sX readily} 3: to make great difficulty or resistance : BALK 
3. strain n 1: an act of straining or the condition of being strained : as  
   1a: excessive physical or mental tension  1b: excessive or difficult 
   exertion or labor  1c: bodily injury from excessive tension, effort, or use 
   {heart ~>; esp : one resulting from a wrench or twist and involving undue 
   stretching of muscles or ligaments {back ~} 1d: deformation of a material 
   body under the action of applied forces  2: an unusual reach, degree, or 
   intensity : PITCH  archaic  3: a strained interpretation of something said 
   or written