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to make an effort at; try; undertake; seek:
to attempt an impossible task; to attempt to walk six miles.
archaic. to attack; move against in a hostile manner:
to attempt a person’s life.
archaic. to tempt.
an effort made to accomplish something:
he made an attempt to swim across the lake.
an attack or -ssault:
an attempt upon the leader’s life.
contemporary examples

a p-ssenger sitting in front of him was attempting to sneak photos of cooper on his iphone.
anderson cooper slams star jones, karl lagerfeld & more (video) mike munoz, melissa leon october 4, 2012

her face was tranquil, her hands, palms facing outward, lodged between her neck and rope, almost as if attempting to pull it away.
new questions arise about mary richardson kennedy’s suicide nancy collins may 15, 2013

or perhaps it is simply too convenient a pr tool in attempting to place all of the onus on one side.
a second response to benny morris daniel levy april 23, 2012

the gop has the difficult task of attempting to undermine holder’s candidacy without being seen as opposing racial progress.
taking the sheen off obama ross goldberg december 9, 2008

they have both known tumult from early on, with bardot first attempting suicide as a teenager.
brigitte bardot pens letter of support for far-right front national candidate marine le pen eric pape february 25, 2012

historical examples

in the meantime the corporal had been picked up, and the men were attempting to recover him.
snarley-yow frederick marryat

one gains nothing by attempting to shut out the sprites of the weather.
yankee gypsies john greenleaf whittier

the wounded buffalo ran on to the border of the next marsh, and, in attempting to cross, fell headlong down the steep bank.
stories of animal sagacity w.h.g. kingston

i have told you already, so don’t fly in the face of providence by attempting to deny it!’
little dorrit charles d-ckens

most amateurs are deterred from attempting to manufacture it, and so have to content themselves with only the simplest pieces.
the pyrotechnist’s treasury thomas kentish

verb (transitive)
to make an effort (to do something) or to achieve (something); try
to try to surmount (an obstacle)
to try to climb: they will attempt the north wall of the eiger
(archaic) to attack
(archaic) to tempt
noun
an endeavour to achieve something; effort
a result of an attempt or endeavour
an attack, esp with the intention to kill: an attempt on his life
v.

late 14c., from old french attempter (14c.), earlier atenter “to try, attempt, test,” from latin attemptare “to try” (cf. italian attentare, old provençal, portuguese attentar, spanish atentar), from ad- “to, upon” (see ad-) + temptare “to try” (see tempt). related: attempted; attempting.
n.

1530s, from attempt (v.). meaning “effort to accomplish something by violence” is from 1580s, especially as an -ssault on someone’s life.