relieve
verb (used with object)
to ease or alleviate (pain, distress, anxiety, need, etc.).
had been relieving
-
past perfect progressiveof relieve.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
We had been relieving ourselves outside, but with the snowstorm in full rage, we had no choice but to sit on a bucket in the jurta.
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
Silently and cautiously, as if he had been relieving a hen-roost of its superfluous inhabitants, Billy crept along, testing the foothold at every step.
From The Suprising Adventures of Sir Toady Lion With Those of General Napoleon Smith by S. R. (Samuel Rutherford) Crockett
He had been relieving distress in a quiet, unostentatious way, and he now settled the native question with characteristic celerity.
From The Siege of Kimberley by T. Phelan
While we had been trying to forget our tired limbs in a discussion of literary tastes and standards, our workmates had been relieving the treadmill tedium of the long afternoon by various expedients.
From The Long Day The Story of a New York Working Girl As Told by Herself by Dorothy Richardson
He had been relieving the tedium of this sight-seeing tour by observing—and from time to time aggravating—Mildred's sufferings.
From The Price She Paid by David Graham Phillips
