Relieve

How to spell relieve

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce relieve

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does relieve mean?

1. verbTo lessen or remove pain, distress, or an unwelcome feeling.
2. verbTo take over a duty or post from someone, allowing them to stop.

Relieve in a sentence

• A warm bath can relieve aching muscles after a long shift.

• The night nurse arrived at seven to relieve the day staff.

• The new bypass should relieve traffic congestion in the town centre.

• A fresh driver came to relieve him at the halfway point of the journey.

Where does relieve come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb relevare, which literally meant 'to raise again' or 'to lift up', built from the prefix re- ('again, back') and levare ('to raise or make light'), itself from levis meaning 'light in weight'. The sense moved naturally from physically lifting a load to easing a burden of pain, worry, or hardship. English took it during the 1300s from Old French relever, and the spelling settled with the -ieve ending that follows the familiar 'i before e' pattern after the soft consonant. The same levare root quietly survives in everyday relatives such as 'elevate', 'lever', and 'levity', all of which carry that idea of lightness or lifting. Keeping the levis 'light' connection in mind helps explain why relieving someone is really about making things lighter for them.

How the word is built

• re- (again, back)
• lieve (from Latin levare: to raise, lighten)