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en·deav·or
Pronunciation:
\in-ˈde-vər\
Function:verb

Inflected Form(s):
en·deav·ored; en·deav·or·ing\-v(ə-)riŋ\

Etymology:Middle English endeveren to exert oneself, from en- + dever duty — more at devoir

Date:15th century

transitive verb
1: archaic : to strive to achieve or reach
2: to attempt (as the fulfillment of an obligation) by exertion of effort <endeavors to finish the race>intransitive verb: to work with set purpose.

I guess I'm surprised to see that definition #1 is considered archaic...

1: archaic : to strive to achieve or reach
2: to attempt (as the fulfillment of an obligation) by exertion of effort <endeavors to finish the race>intransitive verb: to work with set purpose.

I guess I'm surprised to see that definition #1 is considered archaic...

I agree with you on that one.

An interesting aside: here in the US we spell it as given above, with the Brits using their usual -our ending. However, the NASA space shuttle is called Endeavour.