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Webster 1913 Edition

Relieve

Re-lieve′

(r?-l?v′)

Verb.

[

imp. & p. p.

Relieved

(-l?vd′)

;

p. pr. & vb. n.

Relieving

[OE.

releven

, F.

relever

to raise again, discharge, relieve, fr. L.

relevare

to lift up, raise, make light, relieve; pref.

re-

re- +

levare

to raise, fr.

levis

light. See

Levity

, and cf.

Relevant

Relief

To lift up; to raise again, as one who has fallen; to cause to rise.

[Obs.]

Piers Plowman.

To cause to seem to rise; to put in relief; to give prominence or conspicuousness to; to set off by contrast.

Her tall figure

relieved

against the blue sky; seemed almost of supernatural height.

Sir W. Scott.

To raise up something in; to introduce a contrast or variety into; to remove the monotony or sameness of.

The poet must . . . sometimes

relieve

the subject with a moral reflection.

Addison.

To raise or remove, as anything which depresses, weighs down, or crushes; to render less burdensome or afflicting; to alleviate; to abate; to mitigate; to lessen;

as, to

relieve

pain; to

relieve

the wants of the poor.

To free, wholly or partly, from any burden, trial, evil, distress, or the like; to give ease, comfort, or consolation to; to give aid, help, or succor to; to support, strengthen, or deliver;

as, to

relieve

a besieged town

Now lend assistance and

relieve

the poor.

Dryden.

To release from a post, station, or duty; to put another in place of, or to take the place of, in the bearing of any burden, or discharge of any duty.

Who hath

relieved

you?

Shakespeare

To ease of any imposition, burden, wrong, or oppression, by judicial or legislative interposition, as by the removal of a grievance, by indemnification for losses, or the like; to right.

Syn. – To alleviate; assuage; succor; assist; aid; help; support; substain; ease; mitigate; lighten; diminish; remove; free; remedy; redress; indemnify.

Webster 1828 Edition

Relieve

RELIE'VE

Verb.

[L. relevo. See Relief.]

To free, wholly or partially, from pain, grief, want, anxiety, care, toil, trouble, burden, oppression or any thing that is considered to be an evil; to ease of any thing that pains the body or distresses the mind. Repose relieves the wearied body; a supply of provisions relieves a family in want; medicines may relieve the sick man, even when they do not cure him. We all desire to be relieved from anxiety and from heavy taxes. Law or duty, or both, require that we should relieve the poor and destitute.

To alleviate or remove; as when we say, to relieve pain or distress; to relieve the wants of the poor.

To dismiss from a post or station, as sentinels, a guard or ships, and station others in their place. Sentinels are generally relieved every two hours; a guard is usually relieved once in twenty four hours.

To right; to ease of any burden, wrong or oppression by judicial or legislative interposition, by the removal of a grievance, by indemnification for losses and the like.

To abate the inconvenience of any thing by change, or by the interposition of something dissimilar. The moon relieves the luster of the sun with a milder light.

The poet must not encumber his poem with, too much business, but sometimes relieve the subject with a moral reflection.

To assist; to support.

Parallels or like relations alternately relieve each other; when neither will pass asunder, yet are they plausible together.

Definition 2024

relieve

English

Verb

relieve ‎(third-person singular simple present relieves, present participle relieving, simple past and past participle relieved)

To ease (a person, person's thoughts etc.) from mental distress; to stop (someone) feeling anxious or worried, to alleviate the distress of. [from 14th c.]
I was greatly relieved by the jury's verdict.‎
- 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 5, in The Celebrity:
  Then we relapsed into a discomfited silence, and wished we were anywhere else. But Miss Thorn relieved the situation by laughing aloud, and with such a hearty enjoyment that instead of getting angry and more mortified we began to laugh ourselves, and instantly felt better.
To ease (someone, a part of the body etc.) or give relief from physical pain or discomfort. [from 14th c.]
To alleviate (pain, distress, mental discomfort etc.). [from 14th c.]
To provide comfort or assistance to (someone in need, especially in poverty). [from 14th c.]
(obsolete) To lift up; to raise again. [15th-17th c.]
(now rare) To raise (someone) out of danger or from (a specified difficulty etc.). [from 15th c.]
(law) To free (someone) from debt or legal obligations; to give legal relief to. [from 15th c.]
This shall not relieve either Party of any obligations.
To bring military help to (a besieged town); to lift the seige on. [from 16th c.]
To release (someone) from or of a difficulty, unwanted task, responsibility etc. [from 16th c.]
(military, job) To free (someone) from their post, task etc. by taking their place. [from 16th c.]
(now rare) To make (something) stand out; to make prominent, bring into relief. [from 18th c.]
- 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, III.76:
  The henna should be deeply dyed to make / The skin relieved appear more fairly fair [...].
- 1927, Countee Cullen, From the Dark Tower:
  The night whose sable breast relieves the stark / White stars is no less lovely being dark
(reflexive) To go to the toilet; to defecate or urinate. [from 20th c.]