ef ‧ fort S1 W1 /ˈefət $ ˈefərt/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ effort ; adverb : ↑ effortlessly ; adjective : ↑ effortless ]
[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: esfort , from esforcier 'to force' ]
1 . PHYSICAL/MENTAL ENERGY [uncountable] the physical or mental energy that is needed to do something:
Lou lifted the box easily, without using much effort.
Frank put a lot of effort into the party.
Learning to speak another language takes effort.
2 . ATTEMPT [uncountable and countable] an attempt to do something, especially when this involves a lot of hard work or determination:
Please make an effort to be polite.
sb’s effort(s) to do something
Tom’s efforts to stop smoking haven’t been very successful.
Church leaders are prepared to meet the terrorists in an effort to (=in order to try to) find peace.
effort at
Further efforts at negotiation have broken down.
through sb’s efforts (=because of their efforts)
The money was raised largely through the efforts of parents.
despite sb’s efforts
Despite all our efforts we lost the game 1–0.
3 . be an effort to be difficult or painful to do:
I was so weak that even standing up was an effort.
4 . PARTICULAR SITUATION [countable] work that people do to achieve something in a particular situation:
the fundraising effort
the international relief effort
Everyone did what they could to support the war effort.
5 . good/bad/poor etc effort something that has been done well, badly etc:
Not a bad effort for a beginner!
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meanings 1 & 2)
■ verbs
▪ make an effort (=try)
She made an effort to change the subject of the conversation.
▪ put effort into (doing) something (=try hard to do something)
Let’s try again, only put more effort into it this time.
▪ take the effort out of something (=make it easy)
An automatic car takes the effort out of driving.
▪ something takes effort ( also it takes effort to do something ) (=you have to try hard)
It takes a sustained effort to quit smoking.
▪ something requires/involves effort formal (=it takes effort)
Trying to get my mother to change her mind requires considerable effort.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + effort
▪ successful
Their efforts were successful, and they won the contract.
▪ unsuccessful
Efforts to save the hospital from closure have been unsuccessful.
▪ futile (=having no chance of succeeding, and therefore not worth doing)
Doctors knew that any effort to save his life would be futile.
▪ a big/great effort
The government has made a big effort to tackle the problem of poverty.
▪ considerable effort (=a lot of effort)
The police put considerable effort into finding his car.
▪ a supreme/tremendous effort (=a very big effort)
It was only with a supreme effort that Roger controlled his temper.
▪ a special effort (=one that you do not normally make)
I made a special effort to be nice to the children.
▪ a constant effort (=one that never stops)
Walking was a constant effort.
▪ a sustained effort (=one that you continue making for a long time)
It will take a sustained effort over the next 5 years to achieve our objectives.
▪ a conscious/deliberate effort (=one that you concentrate on in order to achieve something)
He made a conscious effort to become a better person.
▪ a determined effort (=showing a lot of determination)
She had made a determined effort to lose weight.
▪ a desperate effort (=one you make when you are in a very bad situation)
The fox made a desperate effort to get away.
▪ a concerted effort (=involving a lot of different actions, or a lot of people working together)
It will take a concerted effort to change the culture of binge-drinking in the country.
▪ a joint/team effort (=involving a group or team of people)
We had many fine individual performances, but the win was a real team effort.
▪ a collaborative/cooperative effort formal (=with different people or groups working together)
This was a collaborative effort involving the three largest energy companies.
▪ physical/mental effort
He struggled back from two sets down to win the match, showing great physical and mental effort.
▪ a final/last-ditch effort (=a last effort, when you want very much to achieve something)
Sam took a deep breath and prepared herself for one final effort.
■ phrases
▪ make the effort (=do something that requires some effort)
I felt too tired to go to a party, but decided to make the effort.
▪ make every effort to do something (=try very hard)
I made every effort to see their point of view.
▪ make no effort to do something (=not try at all)
They make no effort to speak the local language.
▪ be (well) worth the effort (=used to say that something is worth doing even though it is hard)
It’s a difficult place to get to, but it's well worth the effort.
▪ an effort of will (=a big effort to do something that you find difficult because of the way you feel)
It took a huge effort of will not to cry.
▪ with effort formal (=trying very hard)
With great effort, he managed to keep quiet.
▪ without effort (=easily, without trying hard)
Her horse jumped the fence without any effort.
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 4)
■ NOUN + effort
▪ a relief effort
The UN is organizing the relief effort to the region affected by the earthquake.
▪ a fund-raising effort
The party is planning a huge fund-raising effort later this year.
▪ the war effort
Taxes were raised to support the war effort.