at ease
Idioms-
Also, at one's ease . Comfortable, relaxed, unembarrassed, as in I always feel at ease in my grandmother's house . The related idiom put at ease means “make comfortable, reassure,” as in I was worried that the letter would not arrive in time, but the postmaster put me at ease . [1300s] For the antonym, see ill at ease .
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In a relaxed position in military ranks. The phrase is often used as a command for troops standing at attention to relax, as in At ease, squadron . The command stand at ease is slightly different. A British military dictionary of 1802 described it as standing with the right foot drawn back about six inches and one's weight put on it. An American version is to stand with one's feet slightly apart and the hands clasped behind one's back.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the meantime, Baker was there to tell a few stories and put everyone in his hometown at ease, as he did for decades as one of baseball’s most acclaimed managers.
From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026
Here at the farm, the first lady seems far more at ease than at the formal functions we had previously followed her to.
From BBC • May 17, 2026
Put your boss’s mind at ease and answer that email, even if it feels like overcommunicating.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
Kelly looked a little ill at ease to be out from behind the desk where she records her daily political commentary program, The Megyn Kelly Show.
From Slate • May 6, 2026
She appeared to be not in the least ill at ease sitting on an upturned box in a bare room and drinking tea out of a mug that she balanced on her knee.
From "Matilda" by Roald Dahl
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
