travail

tra·vail  (tr-vl, trvl)

n.

1. Work, especially when arduous or involving painful effort; toil. See Synonyms at work.

2. Tribulation or agony; anguish.

3. The labor of childbirth.

intr.v. tra·vailed, tra·vail·ing, tra·vails

1. To work strenuously; toil.

2. To be in the labor of childbirth.

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[Middle English, from Old French, from travailler, to work hard, from Vulgar Latin *triplire, to torture with a tripalium, from Late Latin triplium, instrument of torture, probably from Latin triplis, having three stakes : tri-, tri- + plus, stake; see pag- in Indo-European roots.]

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travail

Noun

Literary painful or exceptionally hard work [Old French travaillier]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	travail - concluding state of pregnancy; from the onset of contractions to the birth of a child; "she was in labor for six hours" childbed, confinement, lying-in, parturiency, labour, labor uterine contraction - a rhythmic tightening in labor of the upper uterine musculature that contracts the size of the uterus and pushes the fetus toward the birth canal effacement - shortening of the uterine cervix and thinning of its walls as it is dilated during labor birthing, giving birth, parturition, birth - the process of giving birth maternity, pregnancy, gestation - the state of being pregnant; the period from conception to birth when a woman carries a developing fetus in her uterus premature labor, premature labour - labor beginning prior to the 37th week of gestation asynclitism, obliquity - the presentation during labor of the head of the fetus at an abnormal angle
	2.	travail - use of physical or mental energy; hard work; "he got an A for effort"; "they managed only with great exertion" elbow grease, exertion, effort, sweat toil, labor, labour - productive work (especially physical work done for wages); "his labor did not require a great deal of skill" struggle - strenuous effort; "the struggle to get through the crowd exhausted her" difficulty, trouble - an effort that is inconvenient; "I went to a lot of trouble"; "he won without any trouble"; "had difficulty walking"; "finished the test only with great difficulty" least effort, least resistance - the least effortful way to do something straining, strain - an intense or violent exertion exercise, exercising, physical exercise, physical exertion, workout - the activity of exerting your muscles in various ways to keep fit; "the doctor recommended regular exercise"; "he did some exercising"; "the physical exertion required by his work kept him fit" pull - a sustained effort; "it was a long pull but we made it" diligence, application - a diligent effort; "it is a job requiring serious application" overkill - any effort that seems to go farther than would be necessary to achieve its goal supererogation - an effort above and beyond the call of duty overexertion - excessive exertion; so much exertion that discomfort or injury results detrition, friction, rubbing - effort expended in moving one object over another with pressure
Verb	1.	travail - work hard; "She was digging away at her math homework"; "Lexicographers drudge all day long" drudge, labour, moil, toil, fag, labor, dig, grind do work, work - be employed; "Is your husband working again?"; "My wife never worked"; "Do you want to work after the age of 60?"; "She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money"; "She works as a waitress to put herself through college"