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peiner

to struggle, to toil

verb peh-NEH Rare

Also means

to grieve, to sadden

Usage Note

Peiner has two distinct uses: intransitively it means to struggle or have difficulty (il peine à comprendre — he struggles to understand), and transitively it means to sadden someone (cela me peine beaucoup — that saddens me greatly). The related noun is peine (sorrow, effort, penalty), one of the most versatile words in French.

Examples

"Il peine à trouver les mots justes."

Natural Translation

He struggles to find the right words.

Literal Translation

He struggles to find the just words.

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