strain after

strain after something

[for a singer] to work very hard to reach a very high or a very low note. Don't strain after the note. Let it come naturally, like a cooling breeze. She was straining after each note as if it hurt her to sing, which it probably did.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Norwood	['nɔ:.wud]
Ferdynand	fer-DI-nahnd	Polish
Amadi (2)	-	Western African, Yoruba
Valentin	VAH-len-teen (German), vah-lyen-TEEN (Russian), vah-leen-TEEN (Russian)	French, Romanian, German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Czech, Russian, Bulgarian, Slovene, Croatian,
Edan	-	Irish, Scottish
Forrest	FAWR-əst	English