Is there any word, alternative to the idiom, "rack one's brain"

Question

What word can I use in place of the idiom "rack one's brain," which means to strain in mental effort, esp to remember something (from Collins)?

For instance, a teacher put a chalk box in the principal's office yesterday, but today he is trying his level best to remember where he put that box.

Can I use the verb remind along with a reflexive pronoun, as in: "he reminded himself... ."

A teacher [verb] for where he put that box.

The post (here), which was proposed as duplicate to this question, is irrelevent here. I am just asking about a verb which denotes thinking very hard to remember anything, not the verb that denotes solving problems, like in Maths.

Have a look at this image.

The phrase trying very hard conveys the "strain in mental effort" part, so this would work: "The teacher was trying very hard to remember where he put the box." (No special word needed in place of remember.) — Lawrence, Oct 13 '18 at 13:18
@Lawrence, I have edited the example sentence as well, if you are still not satisfied with that, can you please edit it further? — Ahmed, Oct 13 '18 at 13:26
I've edited to help improve the phrasing of the question, but I've left the sample sentence alone because its phrasing is central to your question. — Lawrence, Oct 13 '18 at 13:28
You're welcome :) . If it wasn't a physical object, you could use strained/reached/stretched. With a physical object, the physical interpretation dominates. — Lawrence, Oct 13 '18 at 13:40
Possible duplicate of Is there an idiom/phrase which contains the word "head" to mean "thinking hard to solve a problem"? — Spencer, Oct 13 '18 at 15:30
Does it have to drop into the sample sentence ("A teacher ___ for where he put that box.") exactly? If so, none of the current answers work. — Jason Bassford, Oct 13 '18 at 17:49
Rodale's Synonym Finder (1978) suggests such phrases as "cudgel one's brain, "trouble one's head," "dwell on," and "put one's mind to." A thesaurus from 1859 suggests "strain or crack one's invention." — Sven Yargs, Oct 18 '18 at 03:05

score 7 · Answer 1 · edited Oct 14 '18 at 06:53

7

There're several good choices.

Agonize, as Spencer mentioned, could be useful.

Ahmed agonized over where he placed the chalk box.

Mull is another one.

Ahmed was mulling over where he placed the chalk box.

Ruminate is a third.

Ahmed was lost in his ruminations over where he placed the chalk box.

You could also do something like struggle.

Ahmed struggled to remember the location of the chalk box.

edited Oct 14 '18 at 06:53

Ahmed

4,657

answered Oct 13 '18 at 17:24

Hijo de hombre

71

1

Good first answer. To make it even better add the definitions you link as citation in the answer, that way if the links ever go dead, the information is still preserved. – Skooba Oct 13 '18 at 19:50
The verb agonize has something to do with taking decisions, not remembering something. Similarly, mull also suggests the same, as agonize does. – Ahmed Oct 14 '18 at 06:49
Actually, agonize could refer to either making a decision or attempting to remember. Your idiom is literally listed as a synonym.
ag·o·nize verb

past tense: agonized; past participle: agonized undergo great mental anguish through worrying about something.

synonyms: worry, fret, fuss, brood, overthink, upset oneself, rack one's brains, wrestle with oneself, be worried, be anxious, feel uneasy, exercise oneself; informal: stew

p.s. Your edit, while technically correct, is a bit pedantic. :)
– Hijo de hombre Oct 14 '18 at 16:53
a) I agree that rack one's brain is synonymous to agonize, but both doesn't have the exact meaning. b) it's good to be pedantic sometimes :) – Ahmed Oct 15 '18 at 07:02

score 4 · Answer 2 · answered Oct 13 '18 at 13:24

4

agony TFD

To suffer mental anguish or worry about something

Your proposed sentence using 'remind' would not be correct:

A teacher was trying very hard to remind himself of that box.

Consider"

The teacher was in agony trying to remember where he had put X.

I you desire to use remember/remind, consider:

A teacher was trying very hard to remember where he put X.

answered Oct 13 '18 at 13:24

lbf

30,385

5

You need a verb, so perhaps"agonize" would be better than "agony". – Spencer Oct 13 '18 at 15:37

score 1 · Answer 3 · edited Jun 15 '20 at 07:40

1

Try recollect:

remember (something); call to mind. (Oxford)

The teacher recollected where he put that box.

edited Jun 15 '20 at 07:40

Community

1

answered Oct 13 '18 at 13:58

score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Oct 13 '18 at 15:28

1

What about ponder?

To reflect or consider with thoroughness and care.

You could say, "All day long, the teacher pondered over the location of the misplaced chalk."

answered Oct 13 '18 at 15:28

bjmc

1,347

score 1 · Answer 5 · answered Oct 13 '18 at 19:43

1

Fret or mull [over] connote more anxiety than ponder or deliberate. Cogitate is in between. You could also say you’re working or stuck on a math problem (or wherever else it’s plain from context that your effort is mental).

answered Oct 13 '18 at 19:43

Davislor

7,478

Is there any word, alternative to the idiom, "rack one's brain"

5 Answers5