traɪ v. & n. --v. (-ies, -ied) 1 intr.
make an
effort with a
view to
success (often foll. by to + infin.; colloq. foll. by
and + infin.:
tried to be on
time; try and be
early; I
shall try hard). °Use with and is
uncommon in
the past tense and in
negative contexts (except in imper.). 2 tr. make an effort to
achieve (tried my
best;
had better try
something easier). 3 tr. a test (the
quality of a thing) by
use or
experiment. b test the qualities of (a
person or thing) (try it
before you buy). 4 tr. make
severe demands on (a person, quality, etc.) (my
patience has been sorely tried). 5 tr.
examine the effectiveness or usefulness of
for a
purpose (try
cold water; try the off-licence;
have you tried kicking it?). 6 tr.
ascertain the
state of
fastening of (a
door,
window, etc.). 7 tr. a
investigate and
decide (a case or issue) judicially. b
subject (a person) to
trial (will be tried for murder). 8 tr. make an experiment in
order to
find out (let us try
which takes longest). 9 intr. (foll. by for) a
apply or
compete for. b
seek to
reach or
attain (am
going to try for a
gold medal). 10 tr. (often foll. by out) a
extract (oil)
from fat by
heating. b
treat (fat) in
this way. 11 tr. (often foll. by up)
smooth (roughly-planed wood) with a plane to
give an accurately flat
surface. --n. (pl. -ies) 1 an effort to
accomplish something; an
attempt (give it a try). 2
Rugby Football the
act of
touching the ball down
behind the opposing goal-line, scoring points and entitling the scoring
side to a kick at
goal. 3 Amer. Football an attempt to
score an
extra point in
various ways
after a
touchdown. øtry conclusions with see
CONCLUSION. try a
fall with
contend with. try for size try out or test for suitability. try one's
hand see how
skilful one is,
esp. at the
first attempt. trying-plane a plane used in
trying (see
sense 11 of v.). try it on colloq. 1 test another's patience. 2 attempt to
outwit or
deceive another person. try on put on (clothes etc.) to see if
they fit or
suit the wearer. try-on n.
Brit. colloq. 1 an act of trying it
on. 2 an attempt to fool or deceive. try out 1 put to the test. 2 test thoroughly. try-out n. an
experimental test of
efficiency, popularity, etc. try-sail a
small strong fore-and-aft
sail set on the
mainmast or
other mast of a sailing-vessel in
heavy weather. try-square a carpenter's
square, usu. with one
wooden and one
metal limb. [ME, =
separate,
distinguish,
etc., f. OF
trier sift, of unkn. orig.]