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try

traɪ

Tasting soup and dialling twice are the same move

The picture A hand is laid once on something whose outcome is unknown, and the eyes watch for the answer. TRY is laying a hand on what may not work; DO is simply carrying out what you know works.

Core verbs

Where the picture shows up in try

  1. have another go

    Try again in five minutes.

    traɪ əˈɡen ɪn faɪv ˈmɪnɪts

    Have another go in five minutes.

    A button that did nothing is left alone a moment, then pressed again with one finger

  2. make the effort

    I tried to call you twice.

    aɪ traɪd tə kɔːl juː twaɪs

    I made two attempts to reach you.

    A phone that only rang is hung up and the same number is punched in once more

  3. put it in your mouth

    Try this soup and tell me.

    traɪ ðɪs suːp ənd tel miː

    Taste this soup and tell me.

    A spoon lifts a little broth to the tongue and the eyes come up for a verdict

  4. put it on your body

    Can I try these shoes on?

    kæn aɪ traɪ ðiːz ʃuːz ɑːn

    May I put these shoes on?

    A foot slides into a shoe and the toes wiggle to feel whether it fits

  5. test another way

    Let's try a different key.

    lets traɪ ə ˈdɪfrənt kiː

    Let's have a go with a different key.

    The key that will not turn is pulled out, another is slid in, and the wrist twists

All of it in one picture

Try is one picture: a hand laid on something whose outcome you do not know. Press the stuck button again and you are trying again; dial the same number once more and you are trying to reach someone. A spoon touched to the tongue is trying the soup, and a foot pushed into a shoe is trying it for fit. Pulling out the key that will not turn and fitting another is trying a different way.

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