strain every nerve

to try extremely hard to do something I was straining every nerve to catch what they were saying but they were sitting just a bit too far away from me.

strain every nerve

To make every effort.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Balchin	['bɔ:ltʃin]
Lizbeth	['lizəθ]
Jasmine	['dʒæsmin]
Victorino	beek-to-REE-no (Spanish)	Spanish, Portuguese
Bryson	['braisn]
Morag	MOR-ak	Scottish