Despite the harsh climate, early settlers continued to struggle to cultivate the arid land for crops.
尽管气候恶劣，早期定居者仍继续努力在干旱的土地上耕种作物。
In his address, the university president begins with a personal story about struggling academically as a first-generation college student, using that story to introduce the announcement of a new scholarship fund for students in similar circumstances.
From a Text Structure and Purpose question · Craft and Structure
Which choice best defines “struggle”?
B — To try very hard to do something difficult. “struggle” means to try very hard to do something difficult.
Which word means “to try very hard to do something difficult”?
A — struggle. “struggle” means to try very hard to do something difficult.
struggle — to try very hard to do something difficult. In Chinese: 努力，奋斗.
struggle is pronounced /ˈstrʌɡl/.
Despite the harsh climate, early settlers continued to struggle to cultivate the arid land for crops. (尽管气候恶劣，早期定居者仍继续努力在干旱的土地上耕种作物。)
strive, endeavor, labor — all close in meaning to struggle (to try very hard to do something difficult).
succeed, ease — each the opposite of struggle (to try very hard to do something difficult).
Yes. struggle is on the SAT Prep Basic list — the everyday academic words the SAT assumes you already have. The Digital SAT does not test vocabulary in isolation; words like this one are tested through Words in Context questions, where you choose the word that completes a passage most logically and precisely.