struggling
Fighting against difficulty
Struggling describes effort against difficulty or resistance.
Someone struggling with a heavy load strains to carry it.
A struggling business barely survives.
You might struggle to find the right words or struggle with addiction.
The word implies ongoing effort without easy success—not yet failed, but not thriving either.
Earnest sustained endeavor
- toilingWorking strenuously, exhaustingly
- laboringWorking strenuously
- exertionVigorous physical effort
- grindCrush into particles
slog · pushing · persevering · grappling · wrestling · battling · fighting · working
Severe difficulty or suffering
- hardshipSuffering from difficult circumstances
- difficultyState of being hard
- obstacleSomething blocking the way
- setbackReverse in progress
trial · tribulation · ordeal · predicament · plight · misfortune · burden · woe
Money owed another
- bankruptcyLegal status when insolvent
- insolvencyInability to pay debts
- povertySevere lack of resources
- hardshipSuffering from difficult circumstances
unemployment · foreclosure · arrears · default · penury · broke · destitute · paycheck to paycheck
Remaining alive or intact
- subsistingContinuing to exist
- copingManaging under strain
- existingBeing real now
- enduringPersisting through time
managing · getting by · scraping by · making do · hand to mouth · day to day · hanging on · treading water
Sustained resolve despite obstacles
- determinationFirmness of purpose
- gritDetermination or abrasive particles
- tenacityPersistent grip or resolve
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
fortitude · endurance · persistence · resolve · willpower · courage · backbone · steadfastness
striving
Earnest sustained endeavor
grind · slog · pushing · persevering · grappling · wrestling · battling · fighting · working · grinding
adversity
Severe difficulty or suffering
- hardshipSuffering from difficult circumstances
- difficultyState of being hard
- obstacleSomething blocking the way
setback · trial · tribulation · ordeal · predicament · plight · misfortune · burden · woe · distress
debt
Money owed another
- bankruptcyLegal status when insolvent
- insolvencyInability to pay debts
- povertySevere lack of resources
hardship · unemployment · foreclosure · arrears · default · penury · broke · destitute · paycheck to paycheck · overdraft
surviving
Remaining alive or intact
- subsistingContinuing to exist
- copingManaging under strain
- existingBeing real now
enduring · managing · getting by · scraping by · making do · hand to mouth · day to day · hanging on · treading water · eking out
perseverance
Sustained resolve despite obstacles
- determinationFirmness of purpose
- gritDetermination or abrasive particles
- tenacityPersistent grip or resolve
resilience · fortitude · endurance · persistence · resolve · willpower · courage · backbone · steadfastness · doggedness
- hard timeshardship, unemployment, tough times, joblessness, lean times
- money troublesdebt relief, bad debt, bankruptcy filing, paycheck to paycheck, financial ruin
- business statusactive, inactive, defunct, dormant, operating
- underclasspoor, pauper, peasant, homeless, serf
- financesmoney, affluence, cash, bankrupt, income
- exertioneffort, straining, strain, heaving, labor
strugglingthriving
Succeeding vigorously
flourishing · prosperous · successful · booming · well-off
strugglingeffortless
Requiring no strain
coasting · cruising · excelling · gliding · unhindered
strugglingcarefree
Free from anxiety
untroubled · at ease · content · serene · unburdened
- struggling readerOne with literacy difficulties