striking and striving differ by a single letter, buried far enough into the word to be easy to miss. striking means “the physical coming together of two or more things”. striving means “an effortful attempt to attain a goal”. striking is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈstɹaɪkɪŋ/
1.n.the physical coming together of two or more things
“contact with the pier scraped paint from the hull”
2.n.the act of contacting one thing with another
“repeated hitting raised a large bruise”
3.adj.sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect
“a dramatic sunset”
/ˈstɹaɪvɪŋ/
1.n.an effortful attempt to attain a goal
| striking | striving | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈstɹaɪkɪŋ/ | /ˈstɹaɪvɪŋ/ |
| Said | STRAHY-king | STRAHY-ving |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| Letters | 8 | 8 |
| Parts of speech | noun, adjective | noun |
| Senses | 4 | 1 |
| How common | Common | Familiar |
| Synonyms | contact, impinging | nisus, pains, strain |
Full entry for striking · Full entry for striving · More comparisons