8 results for: relent

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

re·lent

Audio Help [ri-lent] Pronunciation Key

–verb (used without object)

1.	to soften in feeling, temper, or determination; become more mild, compassionate, or forgiving.

2.	to become less severe; slacken: The winds relented.

–verb (used with object)

3.	Obsolete. to cause to soften in feeling, temper, or determination.

4.	Obsolete. to cause to slacken; abate.

5.	Obsolete. to abandon; relinquish.

[Origin: 1350–1400; ME < ML *relentāre, equiv. to L re- re- + lentāre to bend, deriv. of lentus flexible, viscous, slow

]

—Related forms

re·lent·ing·ly, adverb

—Synonyms 1. bend, yield.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
relent

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

re·lent Audio Help   (rĭ-lěnt') Pronunciation Key
v.   re·lent·ed, re·lent·ing, re·lents

v.   intr.
To become more lenient, compassionate, or forgiving. See Synonyms at yield.

v.   tr. Obsolete

To cause to slacken or abate.
To cause to soften in attitude or temper.

[Middle English relenten, to melt, from Anglo-Norman relenter, from relent, damp : Latin re-, re- + Latin lentus, sticky, slow.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
relent

c.1386, "to melt, soften, dissolve," from re-, intensive prefix + L. lentus "slow, viscous, supple" (see lithe). Sense of "become less harsh or cruel" first recorded 1526. The notion is probably of a hard heart melting with pity. Relentless is from 1592.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

relent
verb
give in, as to influence or pressure [syn: yield] [ant: remain firm]

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary (Beta Version) - Cite This Source - Share This
relent [rəˈlent] verb

to become less severe or unkind; to agree after refusing at first
Example: At first she wouldn't let them go to the cinema, but in the end she relented.

Arabic:	يَلين
Chinese (Simplified):	发慈悲，变宽厚
Chinese (Traditional):	發慈悲，變寬厚
Czech:	povolit
Danish:	give efter
Dutch:	toegeven
Estonian:	järele andma
Finnish:	heltyä
French:	se laisser fléchir
German:	sich erweichen lassen
Greek:	ενδίδω, υποχωρώ, γίνομαι λιγότερο αυστηρός
Hungarian:	enged
Icelandic:	mildast
Indonesian:	melunak
Italian:	cedere

Japanese:	気持が和らぐ
Korean:	누그러지다
Latvian:	atmaigt, kļūt pieļāvīgākam
Lithuanian:	pasigailėti, nusileisti
Norwegian:	gi etter, formildes
Polish:	ustąpić
Portuguese (Brazil):	ceder, condescender
Portuguese (Portugal):	ceder
Romanian:	a se îndupleca
Russian:	смилостивиться
Slovak:	povoliť, dať sa obmäkčiť
Slovenian:	popustiti
Spanish:	ablandarse, ceder
Swedish:	låta sig bevekas, ge efter
Turkish:	yumuşamak, insafa gelmek

See also: relentless

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Relent

Re*lent"\ (r?-l?nt"), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Relented; p. pr. & vb. n. Relenting.] [F. ralentir, fr. L. pref. re- re- + ad to + lentus pliant, flexible, slow. See Lithe.]

1. To become less rigid or hard; to yield; to dissolve; to melt; to deliquesce. [Obs.]

He stirred the coals till relente gan The wax again the fire. --Chaucer.

[Salt of tartar] placed in a cellar will . . . begin to relent. --Boyle.

When opening buds salute the welcome day, And earth, relenting, feels the genial ray. --Pope.

2. To become less severe or intense; to become less hard, harsh, cruel, or the like; to soften in temper; to become more mild and tender; to feel compassion.

Can you . . . behold My sighs and tears, and will not once relent? --Shak.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Relent

Re*lent"\, v. t. 1. To slacken; to abate. [Obs.]

And oftentimes he would relent his pace. --Spenser.

2. To soften; to dissolve. [Obs.]

3. To mollify; to cause to be less harsh or severe. [Obs.]

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