Definition

1. Noun:
   • A substitute pitcher in baseball: A relief pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher has been removed.
   • A person or thing that provides relief: Someone or something that alleviates discomfort, distress, or intensity.
   • A substitute or replacement: Someone who takes the place of another person, typically in a work or performance context.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The manager called in a reliever from the bullpen in the seventh inning.
  • For many, music is a great reliever of stress after a long day.
  • When the lead actor fell ill, his reliever performed the role admirably.

Advanced Usage

• "Late-inning reliever": A relief pitcher specializing in pitching during the final innings of a baseball game.

  • The team's success relied heavily on their reliable late-inning reliever.

• "Pain reliever": A common compound term for a medication that reduces pain (Note: This is a compound term listed separately).

  • She took an over-the-counter pain reliever for her headache.

Variants and Related Words

• Relief (n): The feeling of reassurance and relaxation following release from anxiety or pain.
  • The news brought her great relief.
• Relieve (v): To cause a lessening or alleviation of something unpleasant.
  • The medicine helped relieve the symptoms.

Synonyms

• Substitute: A person or thing acting or serving in place of another.
• Alleviator: A person or thing that makes suffering, deficiency, or a problem less severe.
• Replacement: A person or thing that takes the place of another.

Related Phrases

• To relieve someone: To take over a duty or task from someone.
  • The night guard arrived to relieve his colleague.
• Relief pitcher: The full term for a 'reliever' in baseball.
  • He had a long career as a relief pitcher for several teams.

Related Idioms

• A sight for sore eyes: Someone or something that is a welcome and comforting sight, often functioning as a reliever of tedium or distress.
  • After being lost for hours, the rescue team was a sight for sore eyes.

Noun

1. a pitcher who does not start the game
2. a person who reduces the intensity (e.g., of fears) and calms and pacifies
   • a reliever of anxiety
   • an allayer of fears
3. 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