Link Centre Dictionary

relax

re·lax

UK/ɹɪˈlæks/ US/riˈlæks/ very common

verb

1.

become less tense, rest, or take one''s ease

  • “He relaxed in the hot tub”
  • “Let”
  • “s work”
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Antonyms
2.

make less tight

  • “relax the tension on the rope”
Synonyms
3.

become loose or looser or less tight

  • “The noose loosened”
  • “the rope relaxed”
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Antonyms
4.

cause to feel relaxed

  • “A hot bath always relaxes me”
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5.

become less tense, less formal, or less restrained, and assume a friendlier manner

  • “our new colleague relaxed when he saw that we were a friendly group”
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6.

make less severe or strict

  • “The government relaxed the curfew after most of the rebels were caught”
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7.

become less severe or strict

  • “The rules relaxed after the new director arrived”
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8.

make less active or fast

  • “He slackened his pace as he got tired”
  • “Don”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English relaxen, from Old French relaxer, from Latin relaxāre (“relax, loosen, open”), from re- (“back”) + laxāre (“loosen”), from laxus (“loose, free”). By surface analysis, re- + lax (“open, free, loose”).

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.