RESPITE

Pronunciation (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does respite mean? 

• RESPITE (noun)
  The noun RESPITE has 5 senses:

1. a (temporary) relief from harm or discomfort
2. a pause from doing something (as work)
3. an interruption in the intensity or amount of something
4. a pause for relaxation
5. the act of reprieving; postponing or remitting punishment

  Familiarity information: RESPITE used as a noun is common.

• RESPITE (verb)
  The verb RESPITE has 1 sense:

1. postpone the punishment of a convicted criminal, such as an execution

  Familiarity information: RESPITE used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• RESPITE (noun)

Meaning:

A (temporary) relief from harm or discomfort

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

reprieve; respite

Hypernyms ("respite" is a kind of...):

ease; relief (the condition of being comfortable or relieved (especially after being relieved of distress))

Meaning:

A pause from doing something (as work)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

time out; respite; break; recess

Context examples:

we took a 10-minute break / he took time out to recuperate

Hypernyms ("respite" is a kind of...):

pause (temporary inactivity)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "respite"):

spring break (a week or more of recess during the spring term at school)

Meaning:

An interruption in the intensity or amount of something

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

abatement; hiatus; reprieve; respite; suspension

Hypernyms ("respite" is a kind of...):

break; interruption (some abrupt occurrence that interrupts an ongoing activity)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "respite"):

defervescence (abatement of a fever as indicated by a reduction in body temperature)

remission; remittal; subsidence (an abatement in intensity or degree (as in the manifestations of a disease))

Meaning:

A pause for relaxation

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

rest period; rest; respite; relief

Context example:

people actually accomplish more when they take time for short rests

Hypernyms ("respite" is a kind of...):

break; intermission; interruption; pause; suspension (a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "respite"):

breath; breather; breathing place; breathing space; breathing spell; breathing time (a short respite)

Meaning:

The act of reprieving; postponing or remitting punishment

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

reprieve; respite

Hypernyms ("respite" is a kind of...):

clemency; mercifulness; mercy (leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice)

Domain category:

jurisprudence; law (the collection of rules imposed by authority)

• RESPITE (verb)

Meaning:

Postpone the punishment of a convicted criminal, such as an execution

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Synonyms:

reprieve; respite

Hypernyms (to "respite" is one way to...):

defer; hold over; postpone; prorogue; put off; put over; remit; set back; shelve; table (hold back to a later time)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody