respite
Americannoun
-
a delay or cessation for a time, especially of anything distressing or trying; an interval of relief.
to toil without respite.
-
temporary suspension of the execution of a person condemned to death; reprieve.
- Synonyms:
- stay, postponement
noun
-
a pause from exertion; interval of rest
-
a temporary delay
-
a temporary stay of execution; reprieve
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of respite
First recorded in 1200–50; (for the noun) Middle English respit, from Old French, from Latin respectus “action of looking back, consideration, regard”; (for the verb) Middle English respiten, from Old French respitier, from Latin respectāre “to await, keep looking around,” from respicere “to look back”; see respect
Explanation
A respite is a break from something that's difficult or unpleasant. If you're cramming for exams, take an occasional walk to give yourself a respite from the intensity. Respite may look like it rhymes with despite, but this word has a stress on its first syllable (RES-pit). It comes from the Latin word respectus, meaning refuge, but we almost always use respite to describe a time, not a place, of relief. If you've been fighting with your partner, a visit from a friend might offer a brief respite from the argument, but the fight will pick up again when she leaves.
Vocabulary lists containing respite
"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
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List 4
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"The Raven"
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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.
See Examples For:
Tehran said in turn it would stop its retaliatory attacks on regional neighbours, handing Gulf shipping and the oil industry a respite.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
The price of home heating oil is on the rise again after a period of respite.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Still, today has provided some respite from the norm.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
US households saw some temporary respite in recent weeks as gasoline prices -- which have been squeezing families' budgets -- dropped below the $4 per gallon average on an interim deal between Washington and Tehran.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
This involved long hours, late into the night, with barely any respite.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
There were brief respites, but things seldom got easier: “The wind whipped up at noon and sleet came smacking down,” Mr. Tesson recalls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 11, 2025
Even for malaria the respites may be transient.
From Science Magazine ● Sep. 25, 2023
A smaller seaside resort flourished at Crescent Beach, just north of the White Rock beach resort town, with its own cluster of cottages, eateries and sandy respites.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 29, 2023
Taking turns tossing and catching the ball furnishes the game with built-in respites, which give the participants a chance to reflect on past choices and prepare for future ones.
From New York Times ● Jul. 18, 2023
She knew she was heading somewhere for another of her brief respites from Orlando’s paperness.
From "Paper Towns" by John Green
For a few hours, then—possibly for a few days—he was respited.
From Major Vigoureux by Quiller-Couch, Arthur Thomas, Sir
She felt herself respited; yet doubly angry and apprehensive.
From Anne by Woolson, Constance Fenimore
The parties being summoned to Oxford, the judges received letters of request from our lord the King, that this business should be respited.
From The Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond: A Picture of Monastic Life in the Days of Abbot Samson by Brakelond, Jocelin de
He was prevailed on to petition the council, upon which he was respited to the 30th, and from that to May 9th, when he suffered according to his sentence.
From Biographia Scoticana (Scots Worthies) A Brief Historical Account of the Lives, Characters, and Memorable Transactions of the Most Eminent Scots Worthies by Howie, John
Bradford, the fifth, was respited, in the hope that the example might tell upon him.
From The Reign of Mary Tudor by Rhys, Ernest
By this simple sentence a flood of light is thrown on the fact of respiting him alone amongst the four men admittedly concerned in the rescue.
From The Dock and the Scaffold by Unknown
Then they made a last attempt in his favor, and voted for respiting the execution.
From Critical and Historical Essays, Volume III (of 3) by Macaulay, Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron
Then they made a last attempt in his favour, and voted for respiting the execution.
From Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches — Volume 2 by Macaulay, Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron
The respiting of the burning of the hand till the king's pardon could be obtained was not to put him in a worse condition than he would have been in had he been actually burnt.
From State Trials Vol. 2 (of 2) Political and Social by Various
"There is one strange fact about this," said the governor of the prison to Harkaway, "and that is, that one of the prisoners has taken the liberty of respiting himself."
From Jack Harkaway and His Son's Escape from the Brigand's of Greece by Hemyng, Bracebridge
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.
