relief
noun
re·lief
| \ ri-ˈlēf
\
\
Definition of relief
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: a payment made by a male feudal tenant to his lord on succeeding to an inherited estate
2a
: removal or lightening of something oppressive, painful, or distressing
b
: welfare sense 2a
c
: military assistance to an endangered post or force
d
: means of breaking or avoiding monotony or boredom : diversion
3
: release from a post or from the performance of duty
4
: one that takes the place of another on duty
5
: legal remedy or redress
6 [ French, from Middle French, from Italian rilievo relievo ]
a
: a mode of sculpture in which forms and figures are distinguished from a surrounding plane surface
b
: sculpture or a sculptural form executed in this mode
c
: projecting detail, ornament, or figures
7a
: sharpness of outline due to contrast
a roof in bold relief against the sky
b
: the state of being distinguished by contrast
throws the two opinions into bold relief
8
: the elevations or inequalities of a land surface
9
: the pitching done by a relief pitcher
two innings of hitless relief
relief
adjectiveDefinition of relief (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: providing relief
2
: characterized by surface inequalities
3
: of or used in letterpress
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Examples of relief in a Sentence
Noun
I felt such a sense of relief after I finished my thesis. He expressed relief that the crisis was finally over. Much to everyone's relief, the airplane took off without any problems. What a relief it is to be back home. Exercise is an excellent source of stress relief. Both candidates promised tax relief for middle-class families. Countries from around the world have been sending relief to the flood victims. We donated to the relief effort for the hurricane victims. My father lost his job and we had to go on relief.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Taking allergy tablets as recommended can ideally provide long-lasting relief after around three to five years, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI). — Beth Krietsch, SELF, "Can Allergy Tablets Make Your Life Less Miserable?," 20 Aug. 2019 The auto industry initially sought relief from the Obama targets when Trump was elected. — Alexei Koseff, SFChronicle.com, "Two more carmakers may dump Trump for CA’s emissions targets, Newsom says," 20 Aug. 2019 The agreements also could be read to allow a party to seek injunctive relief unless it was prohibited by the agreement. — Dan Eaton, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Why otherwise defective arbitration agreements may be enforced against high-ranking executives," 19 Aug. 2019 The dorsal root ganglion is a collection of nerves near the spinal canal that can be stimulated to provide pain relief in certain conditions. — Markus Bendel, sun-sentinel.com, "Although uncommon, some people have pain even after knee replacement surgery," 14 Aug. 2019 To Manzoor, these provided little relief from the agony of his particular disaffection. — Sarah Lyall, New York Times, "Finding Salvation in Springsteen From a London Suburb," 9 Aug. 2019 The key here might be Rice transfer Roe Wilkins … ASU has one of the top tailbacks in the country in Eno Benjamin, but who provides the relief? — Jon Wilner, The Denver Post, "Pac-12 football training camp preview: South Division," 1 Aug. 2019 Fortunately, there are more than a few options that provide relief. — Vogue, "How to Find the Best Sunscreen For Sensitive Skin," 8 Aug. 2019 What provides relief at a community level is when people find ability in themselves to acknowledge truth in what the other is saying. — Anna Wiener, The New Yorker, "The Lonely Work of Moderating Hacker News," 8 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'relief.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for relief
relief
noun
English Language Learners Definition of relief
: a pleasant and relaxed feeling that someone has when something unpleasant stops or does not happen
: the removal or reducing of something that is painful or unpleasant
: things (such as food, money, or medicine) that are given to help people who are victims of a war, earthquake, flood, etc.
See the full definition for relief in the English Language Learners Dictionary
relief
noun
re·lief
| \ ri-ˈlēf
\
\
Kids Definition of relief
1
: the feeling of happiness that occurs when something unpleasant or distressing stops or does not happen
What a relief to be home safe.
2
: removal or lessening of something painful or troubling
I need relief from this headache.
3
: something that interrupts in a welcome way
The rain was a relief from dry weather.
4
: release from a post or from performance of a duty
relief of a guard
5
: welfare sense 2
6
: a sculpture in which figures or designs are raised from a background
7
: elevations of a land surface
The map shows relief.