Nearby Words
verb (used with object)
1.
to ease or alleviate (pain, distress, anxiety, need, etc.).
2.
to free from anxiety, fear, pain, etc.
3.
to free from need, poverty, etc.
4.
to bring effective aid to (a besieged town, military position, etc.).
5.
EXPANDto ease (a person) of any burden, wrong, or oppression, as by legal means.
6.
7.
to make less tedious, unpleasant, or monotonous; break or vary the sameness of: curtains to relieve the drabness of the room.
8.
to bring into relief or prominence; heighten the effect of.
9.
to release (one on duty) by coming as or providing a substitute or replacement.
10.
Machinery.
a.
to free (a closed space, as a tank, boiler, etc.) of more than a desirable pressure or vacuum.
b.
to reduce (the pressure or vacuum in such a space) to a desirable level.
11.
COLLAPSEBaseball. to replace (a pitcher).
verb (used without object)
12.
:10
:09
:08
:07
:06
:05
:04
:03
:02
:01
Relievedly
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
13.
to relieve oneself, to urinate or defecate.
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English releven < Middle French relever to raise < Latin relevāre to reduce the load of, lighten, equivalent to re- re- + levāre to raise, derivative of levis light in weight
1300–50; Middle English releven < Middle French relever to raise < Latin relevāre to reduce the load of, lighten, equivalent to re- re- + levāre to raise, derivative of levis light in weight
Related forms
re·liev·a·ble, adjective
non·re·liev·ing, adjective
qua·si-re·lieved, adjective
un·re·liev·a·ble, adjective
EXPANDSynonyms
1. mitigate, assuage, allay, lighten, lessen, abate, diminish. See comfort. 1-4. aid, help, assist. 3. support, sustain. 4. succor.
1. mitigate, assuage, allay, lighten, lessen, abate, diminish. See comfort. 1-4. aid, help, assist. 3. support, sustain. 4. succor.
Antonyms
1. intensify.
1. intensify.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
|
Link To relievedly
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
relieve
c.1300, from O.Fr. relever "to raise, relieve" (11c.), from L. relevare "to raise, alleviate," from re-, intensive prefix, + levare "to lift up, lighten," from levis "not heavy" (see lever). The notion is "to raise (someone) out of trouble." Reliever in the baseball pitcher
EXPANDsense is recorded from 1967. Related: relieved.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
relieve re·lieve (rĭ-lēv')
v. re·lieved, re·liev·ing, re·lieves
To cause a lessening or alleviation of something, such as pain, tension, or a symptom.
To free an individual from pain, anxiety, or distress.
re·liev'a·ble adj.
re·liev'er n.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Word Dynamo By Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.