Make an effort to study with care (7)

I believe the answer is:

contend

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'make an effort to' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.

'study with care' is the wordplay.
'study' becomes 'con' (con can mean to study).
'with' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'care' becomes 'tend' (I've seen this before).
'con'+'tend'='CONTEND'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for contend that I've seen before include "Struggle in rivalry" , "Struggle (with someone)" , "Compete; deal (with)" , "Tend NCO (anag.)" , "Debate - contest - claim" .)

I've seen this clue in The Irish Independent, The Globe and Mail and The Irish News.

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