relief

/ri'li:f/
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Thân thiện
relief

The nurse provides relief to the patient with a cool compress.

Definition

Noun 1. The alleviation or removal of distress, pain, or discomfort: The feeling of comfort or ease that comes when something unpleasant, burdensome, or stressful is reduced or ends. 2. Assistance or aid provided to people in need, especially during a crisis: Help given to those suffering from poverty, disaster, or hardship. 3. A person or group that replaces another, especially to provide a rest: Someone who takes over a duty or task from another. 4. A distinctive or prominent quality, especially against a contrasting background: The state of being clearly visible or noticeable due to contrast. 5. A method of sculpture where figures are raised from a flat background: An artistic technique where shapes project from a surface. 6. (Law) Legal redress or compensation: A remedy or award granted by a court.

Usage and Examples
  • As the alleviation of distress:
    • The medicine provided immediate relief from her headache.
    • He sighed with relief when he found his lost keys.
  • As aid or assistance:
    • International agencies sent relief to the flood victims.
    • She has been on unemployment relief since the factory closed.
  • As a replacement:
    • The nurse waited for her relief to arrive at the end of her shift.
    • He worked as a relief driver for the bus company.
  • As prominence or contrast:
    • The white church stood in sharp relief against the dark mountain.
    • The report brought the economic problems into stark relief.
  • As a sculptural technique:
    • The wall was decorated with a beautiful marble relief.
Advanced Usage
  • "on relief": Receiving government financial assistance due to poverty or unemployment.
    • Many families were on relief during the Great Depression.
  • "relief pitcher" (Sports): In baseball, a pitcher who replaces the starting pitcher during a game.
    • The manager called for a relief pitcher from the bullpen.
Variants and Related Words
  • Relieve (verb): To alleviate pain, distress, or a burden; to take over a duty from someone.
    • This pill will relieve your symptoms. / The guard will be relieved at midnight.
  • Relieved (adjective): Feeling happy because something unpleasant has stopped or not happened.
    • I was so relieved to hear you were safe.
  • Relief map (noun): A map that shows the topography (hills, valleys) of an area, often using colors or shading to indicate elevation.
Synonyms
  • For alleviation: Alleviation, ease, comfort, respite.
  • For aid: Aid, assistance, help, support, succor.
  • For replacement: Substitute, replacement, stand-in, fill-in.
Related Phrases and Idioms
  • "breathe a sigh of relief": To feel a strong sense of relaxation and comfort after a period of worry or stress.
    • We all breathed a sigh of relief when the storm passed.
  • "comic relief": A humorous scene or character in a serious story, intended to provide a temporary break from tension.
    • The porter in Macbeth serves as a moment of comic relief.
  • "in bold/high/sharp relief": Very clearly or prominently, often due to strong contrast.
    • The crisis put the government's weaknesses in sharp relief.
relief

The nurse provides relief to the patient with a cool compress.

Noun
  1. the act of freeing a city or town that has been besieged
    • he asked for troops for the relief of Atlanta
  2. sculpture consisting of shapes carved on a surface so as to stand out from the surrounding background
  3. the act of reducing something unpleasant (as pain or annoyance)
    • he asked the nurse for relief from the constant pain
  4. aid for the aged or indigent or handicapped
    • he has been on relief for many years
  5. a change for the better
  6. a pause for relaxation
    • people actually accomplish more when they take time for short rests
  7. assistance in time of difficulty
    • the contributions provided some relief for the victims
  8. someone who takes the place of another (as when things get dangerous or difficult)
    • the star had a stand-in for dangerous scenes
    • we need extra employees for summer fill-ins
  9. (law) redress awarded by a court
    • was the relief supposed to be protection from future harm or compensation for past injury?
  10. the condition of being comfortable or relieved (especially after being relieved of distress)
    • he enjoyed his relief from responsibility
    • getting it off his conscience gave him some ease
  11. the feeling that comes when something burdensome is removed or reduced
    • as he heard the news he was suddenly flooded with relief