striving
part of speech
verb (present participle of strive: strive, strives, strove or strived, striven or strived, striving); noun (striving — uncountable, and strivings)
meaning for a pupil
1) Striving means trying very hard for a long time to get or reach something: «She is striving to improve». tree →
2) As a noun, striving is the effort of trying hard, or the things a person tries hard for. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: Here it means quarreling or fighting, as the two Hebrews quarreled, and as Israel quarreled with Moses at Massah and Meribah. In Ecclesiastes "a striving after wind" means a hard effort that gets nothing, like chasing the wind. Interpretation: The names Massah ("testing") and Meribah ("quarrel") keep the memory of Israel testing God by asking whether He was with them. The tradition sees this as a warning against doubting God's presence. Ecclesiastes is read as teaching that effort for worldly gain alone is empty and that quiet and fear of God matter more. In the primary lessons: In school mottos, reports and assemblies you hear «striving for excellence», «always striving to do our best». In stories and history, striving describes people working hard against difficulties. Phrases: «striving for», «striving to», «striving towards a goal».
examples
- And he went out the second day, and, behold, two men of the Hebrews were striving together; and he said to him that did the wrong: 'Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow?' (Torah EXO.2.13, JPS 1917) tree →
- And the name of the place was called Massah, and Meribah, because of the striving of the children of Israel, and because they tried the LORD, saying: 'Is the LORD among us, or not?' (Torah EXO.17.7, JPS 1917) tree →
- This also is vanity and a striving after wind. (Writings ECC.2.26, JPS 1917) tree →
- Surely this also is vanity and a striving after wind. (Writings ECC.4.16, JPS 1917) tree →
- Better is a handful of quietness, than both the hands full of labour and striving after wind. (Writings ECC.4.6, JPS 1917) tree →
- Our school motto is «Striving for excellence». tree →
- She is always striving to beat her best time. tree →
- The team kept striving even when they were losing. tree →
- Striving for a goal takes patience. tree →
- He is striving to learn his times tables by Friday. tree →
- The explorers were striving to reach the South Pole. tree →
- All that striving paid off when she won the prize. tree →
- He said he was striving after truth, and was considered by his aunt "a model and an example." tree →
note
«Strive» is formal; everyday words are «try hard» or «work hard». Past: «strove» (traditional) or «strived»; past participle «striven» or «strived». Used with «for» + noun or «to» + verb.
In the corpora
- For what hath a man of all his labour, and of the striving of his heart, wherein he laboureth under the sun?
- This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
- This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
- Better is a handful of quietness, than both the hands full of labour and striving after wind.
- Surely this also is vanity and a striving after wind.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «striving» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.