strain

strain (http://definr.com/strain)

     n 1: (physics) deformation of a physical body under the action of
          applied forces
     2: difficulty that causes worry or emotional tension: "she
        endured the stresses and strains of life"; "he presided
        over the economy during the period of the greatest stress
        and danger"- R.J.Samuelson [syn: stress]
     3: a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence; "she
        was humming an air from Beethoven" [syn: tune, melody,
         air, melodic line, line, melodic phrase]
     4: nervousness resulting from mental stress; "his
        responsibilities were a constant strain"; "the mental
        strain of staying alert hour after hour was too much for
        him" [syn: mental strain, nervous strain]
     5: a special kind of domesticated animals within a species; "he
        experimented on a particular breed of white rats"; "he
        created a new variety of sheep" [syn: breed, stock, variety]
     6: (biology) a group of organisms within a species that differ
        in trivial ways from similar groups; "a new strain of
        microorganisms" [syn: form, variant, var.]
     7: a lineage or race of people [syn: breed]
     8: injury to a muscle (often caused by overuse); results in
        swelling and pain
     9: pervading note of an utterance; "I could follow the general
        tenor of his argument" [syn: tenor]
     10: an effortful attempt to attain a goal [syn: striving, nisus,
          pains]
     11: an intense or violent exertion [syn: straining]
     12: the act of singing; "with a shout and a song they marched up
         to the gates" [syn: song]
     v 1: to exert much effort or energy: "straining our ears to
          hear." [syn: strive, reach]
     2: test the limits of; "You are trying my patience!" [syn: try,
         stress]
     3: use to the utmost; exert vigorously or to full capacity; "He
        really extended himself when he climbed Kilimanjaro";
        "Don't strain your mind too much" [syn: extend]
     4: separate by passing through a sieve or other straining
        device to separate out coarser elements; "sift the flour"
        [syn: sift, sieve]
     5: make tense [syn: tense, tense up] [ant: relax, relax]
     6: stretch or force to the limit; "strain the rope" [syn: tense]
     7: remove by passing through a filter; "filter out the
        impurities" [syn: filter, filtrate, separate out, {filter
        out}]
     8: rub through a strainer or process in an electric blender;
        "puree the vegetables for the baby" [syn: puree]
     9: alter the shape of (something) by stress; "His body was
        deformed by leprosy" [syn: deform, distort]