cudgel (one's) brains

To try very hard to comprehend, solve, think of, or remember something. I was up all night cudgeling my brains for a way to pay off all my debts. She cudgeled her brains to remember the man's name.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Heracles	-	Greek Mythology (Latinized)
Gavriil	gah-vree-EEL (Russian)	Russian, Greek
Edan	-	Irish, Scottish
Natsumi	nah-tsoo-mee	Japanese
Theodoor	-	Dutch
SŁAwomira	swah-vaw-MEE-rah	Polish