rack one's brains; think hard
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesverb
to rack one's brains; to think hard; to wrack one's mind
informalDescribes the intense mental effort involved in solving a difficult problem, creating something new, or making a tough decision. Often used in informal contexts.
Wèi为
le了
jiě解
kāi开
zhè这
dào道
shù数
xué学
tí题
，
tā他
jiǎo绞
jìn尽
le了
nǎo脑
zhī汁
。
He racked his brains to solve this math problem.
Xiě写
yǎn演
jiǎng讲
gǎo稿
shí时
，
wǒ我
jiǎo绞
le了
bàn半
tiān天
nǎo脑
zhī汁
cái才
xiǎng想
chū出
kāi开
tóu头
。
When writing the speech, I racked my brains for half a day before coming up with the opening.
Show 2 more examplesShow fewer examples
Bù不
bì必
jiǎo绞
nǎo脑
zhī汁
xiǎng想
wán完
měi美
de的
dá答
àn案
，
shuō说
shuo说
nǐ你
de的
zhēn真
shí实
xiǎng想
fǎ法
jiù就
xíng行
。
No need to rack your brains for a perfect answer, just share your honest thoughts.
Shè设
jì计
shī师
men们
jiǎo绞
nǎo脑
zhī汁
，
zhōng终
yú于
gòu构
sī思
chū出
yī一
gè个
jīng惊
yàn艳
de的
fāng方
àn案
。
The designers racked their brains and finally conceived a stunning proposal.