Etymologically
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effort

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈef.ət/, US /ˈef.ɚt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French effort,[2][3] from Old French esforz, esfort “force, impetuosity, strength”,[4][5] a verbal noun from esforcier “to force out, exert oneself”,[4][2] from Vulgar Latin *exfortiāre (“to show strength”),[4][2] the source also of Italian sforza,[4] from ex- “out” and fortis (“strong”),[4][2] the source of fort and force.[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A strenuous putting forth of power, a laborious attempt: about 1489, in Caxton's translation of Fierabras,[2][6] the late 15th century;[4] the obsolete sense “power, properties” is from 1490.[6]

Semantic evolution

Johnson (1755) defined it as “struggle; laborious endeavour”.[7] The plural efforts came to mean both voluntary exertion and its result.[4] In the arts and oratory an effort is an achievement, often used rather slightingly, from 1857.[6] In mechanics it is a force applied against inertia, from 1842.[6][8] Ortega y Gasset wrote in 1949 that “effort is only effort when it begins to hurt”.[4]

Timeline

  • c. 1489 – a strenuous exertion.[2][6]
  • 1490 – power (obsolete).[6]
  • 1842 – in mechanics.[6]
  • 1857 – an achievement.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The use of physical or mental energy to do something; exertion.
  2. A determined attempt.
  3. Something produced by hard work; an achievement.
  4. An organized campaign by a group: the war effort.
  5. (physics) A force applied against inertia.

Word family

  • effortful
  • effortfully
  • countereffort
  • effortless
  • tractive effort

Usage notes

Effort applies to any attempt, large or small, to do something;[8] exertion stresses the active use of strength or power, endeavor suggests a serious, long effort, and pains and trouble imply care and inconvenience.[8]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  8. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin