grinding
n. uncountablen. hard, boring work that you have to do for a long time to reach a goal. It is often used to describe the daily effort of a job or a difficult task.
n. monotonous, laborious, or repetitive work performed over a sustained period to achieve a specific outcome. Informal in register; frequently used in professional or competitive contexts to describe the reality of daily toil.
The daily grinding of office life can be very tiring.
After years of the corporate grinding, she finally saved enough money to start her own small business.
The relentless grinding of the legislative process often discourages young activists who expect to see immediate results from their advocacy efforts.
Inherited from Middle English gryndynge. By surface analysis, grind + -ing.
Typically used with the definite article ('the grinding') or as a gerund-like noun to describe a continuous state of effort.