The most popular online dictionary and thesaurus for learners of English
respite
noun /ˈres.paɪt/ formalDefinition
› [U] a pause or rest from something difficult or unpleasant: We worked for hours without respite.Pauses and interludesPeaceful and tranquil › [S] a useful delay before something unpleasant happens: Their teacher was away, so they had a day's respite before their essays were due.Useful or advantageous
(Definition of respite noun from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus
© Cambridge University Press)
Focus on the pronunciation of respite
Browse related topics
You are looking at an entry to do with Pauses & interludes, but you might be interested in these topics from the Time topic area:
- About to happen
- Always & never
- At the right time
- Coming to an end
- Continually & repeatedly
- Continue & last
- Continuous & permanent
- Days & times of day
- Days, & parts of the week
- Decades, centuries & the millennium
- Describing age & birthdays
- Describing people who are old
- Describing people who are young
- Describing when something happened or will happen
- Early
- Finished & over
- Frequency & regularity - general words
- Immediately
- In the future & soon
- In the past
- Lasting for a long time
- Late
- Long periods of time
- Modern & fashionable
- Names of months
- New
- Now
- Old or old-fashioned
- Periods of time - general words
- Physically and mentally mature & immature
- Points in time
- Rarely & infrequently
- Relating to regular periods of time
- Relating to time
- Schedules & agendas
- Short in time
- Specific periods of time
- Spending time & time passing
- Stages & phases
- Stages of life
- Temporary
- The seasons
- Turning points & deciding moments
- Until a particular moment
- Watches & clocks
- Years & yearly
Browse the Dictionary
Browse the Thesaurus
SMART Thesaurus: Pauses & interludes
Synonyms and related words:
- abeyance noun
- break noun (INTERRUPTION)
- coffee break noun
- comfort break noun
- comfort stop noun
- hiatus noun
- interlude noun
- intermission noun
- interval noun (TIME/DISTANCE)
- lapse noun (PERIOD)
- lull noun
- moratorium noun
- one-stop adjective
- pause noun
- plateau noun (NO CHANGE)
- stop noun
- suspension noun (STOP)
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Word of the Day
Blog
Read our blog about how the English language behaves.
New Words
Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.
