Literary notes about laboured (AI summary)
The word "laboured" is employed with remarkable versatility in literature, often conveying not only physical exertion but also mental and spiritual striving. In some texts, it emphasizes the weariness and toils of arduous journeys or harsh conditions ([1], [2], [3]), while in others it underscores a deep emotional or religious commitment that demands sustained effort ([4], [5], [6]). Additionally, the term can describe a style of writing or artistic expression that feels overly contrived or weighted, imbuing the narrative with a deliberate heaviness ([7], [8]). Whether referring to the rigors of missionary duty ([9], [10]) or the poignant struggle of a tortured mind ([11], [12]), "laboured" enriches the portrayal of effort and perseverance in a variety of contexts.
- The time and distance seemed endless, and my knees trembled and my breath came laboured as I toiled up the endless steps to the abbey.
— from Dracula by Bram Stoker - His breathing was laboured and rapid, his throat was parched, his shoulders ached with weariness, his legs were trembling.
— from Project Gutenberg Compilation of Short Stories by Chekhov by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov - The dog continued to lie stretched upon tho 16 cushion, breathing in a laboured way, but apparently neither the better nor the worse for its draught.
— from A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle - I have laboured with crying; my jaws are become hoarse, my eyes have failed, whilst I hope in my God.
— from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete - It is not enough to say that Akaky laboured with zeal; no, he laboured with love.
— from Best Russian Short Stories - [21] to fight for such a land, and for those who disinterestedly laboured to benefit it.
— from Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, v. 1 of 3 by James Tod - It may not be: nor even can Fancy's eye Restore what time hath laboured to deface.
— from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage by Baron George Gordon Byron Byron - The style of that text is sometimes laboured and pompous; it is often ungrammatical.
— from Lives of the Most Eminent Painters Sculptors and Architects, Vol. 01 (of 10) by Giorgio Vasari - The most famous of the great Irish missionaries who laboured on the Continent.
— from Bede's Ecclesiastical History of England by Saint the Venerable Bede - He afterwards studied for the ministry in America and was sent as a missionary to Brazil, where he laboured at San Paulo for many years.
— from Some Jewish Witnesses For Christ by Aaron Bernstein - E'en as he spoke his bosom wrought And laboured with the wondering thought What was the speech his ready tongue Had uttered when his heart was wrung.
— from The Rámáyan of Válmíki, translated into English verse by Valmiki - Then I said, Lord, have I laboured in vain?
— from Pascal's Pensées by Blaise Pascal
