1
: done or produced with excessive effort
2
: pushed by antagonism near to open conflict
strained relations
Synonyms
Examples of strained in a Sentence
He made a strained attempt at being polite.
I took the complaint manager's strained smile to mean I wasn't a welcome sight.
Recent Examples on the Web
Roberts never flashes her Pretty Woman smile; Amanda looks strained, especially contrasted with the Scotts.
—
Armond White, National Review, 10 Apr. 2024
Gordon Hayward never made it onto the Spectrum Center court Sunday night, taking a seat for Oklahoma City’s 121-118 win against the Charlotte Hornets due to a strained left posterior tibialis sustained Friday night in Indianapolis.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 8 Apr. 2024
For others, like Kennedy, the larynx muscles push the vocal cords closer together, creating a strained or strangled delivery.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024
There was a lot of awe, disbelief and strained necks as people looked up for four minutes straight.
—Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2024
The Celtics were without star forward Jaylen Brown due to a strained left hand and and guard Derrick White with a back contusion.
—Chris Biderman, Sacramento Bee, 6 Apr. 2024
Biden and Netanyahu's roughly 30-minute call just days after Israeli airstrikes killed seven food aid workers in Gaza added a new layer of complication to the leaders' increasingly strained relationship.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 5 Apr. 2024
Our interactions have always felt strained, and her mental health issues only add another layer of difficulty.
—Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2024
Faced with a strained medical system at the height of the Covid pandemic, the government backed down.
—Jin Yu Young, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Armond White, National Review, 10 Apr. 2024
Gordon Hayward never made it onto the Spectrum Center court Sunday night, taking a seat for Oklahoma City’s 121-118 win against the Charlotte Hornets due to a strained left posterior tibialis sustained Friday night in Indianapolis.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 8 Apr. 2024
For others, like Kennedy, the larynx muscles push the vocal cords closer together, creating a strained or strangled delivery.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024
There was a lot of awe, disbelief and strained necks as people looked up for four minutes straight.
—Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2024
The Celtics were without star forward Jaylen Brown due to a strained left hand and and guard Derrick White with a back contusion.
—Chris Biderman, Sacramento Bee, 6 Apr. 2024
Biden and Netanyahu's roughly 30-minute call just days after Israeli airstrikes killed seven food aid workers in Gaza added a new layer of complication to the leaders' increasingly strained relationship.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 5 Apr. 2024
Our interactions have always felt strained, and her mental health issues only add another layer of difficulty.
—Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2024
Faced with a strained medical system at the height of the Covid pandemic, the government backed down.
—Jin Yu Young, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'strained.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near strained
Cite this Entry
“Strained.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/strained. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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