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# attempt

«attempt» in Mova's school dictionary: **To try to do something, especially something difficult** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 4 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

verb (attempt, attempts, attempted, attempting); noun (an attempt, attempts)

### meaning for a pupil

1) To try to do something, especially something difficult. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#m1)

2) (noun) An act of trying. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#m2)

3) (noun) A try to do something in a sport or a record (a world record attempt). [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#m3)

4) «An attempt on someone's life»: trying to kill someone. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#m4)

### sense in the lessons

In exams, «attempt all questions» means try every question. In sport and maths, number of attempts versus successes (scored 6 goals in 10 attempts). In stories, characters attempt brave things. Phrases: «make an attempt», «at the first attempt», «attempt to», «in an attempt to».

### examples

- Attempt all the questions on the paper. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x1)
- She passed her swimming test at the first attempt. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x2)
- He scored 7 goals from 10 attempts. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x3)
- The climbers attempted to reach the top. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x4)
- In an attempt to win, she ran faster. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x5)
- My first attempt at a cake was a disaster! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x6)
- They made a world record attempt. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x7)
- Do not attempt too much at once. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/#x8)

### note

Formal for «try». «Attempt to do» or «attempt + noun». In maths: success rate = successes ÷ attempts (7 out of 10 attempts = 70%); failed attempts = attempts − successes.

### In the corpora

- [That is a good phonics attempt, not a silly one.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/3-tricky-words-and-common-exception-words/7/)
- ["Trying for a baby" means attempting to get pregnant.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/euphemisms/11-pregnancy-and-birth/12/)
- [Kublai Khan's fleets twice tried to invade Japan, in 1274 and 1281, and both attempts failed, partly because of storms.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/history/23-the-mongols/14/)
- [Some philosophers say tricky true words are better than a lie; others say any attempt to mislead is the same wrong.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/religion-ethics/84-kind-truths-honesty-with-a-gentle-voice/9/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «attempt» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/A/attempt/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.