relieve
gb/ɹɪlˈiv/ us/ɹɪlˈiv/
B1
Inglés
~ 1500
Acepciones
0 acepciones
Verbo
B1
action
1
Make pain or stress less
To make pain, worry, or discomfort go away or become less.
Patrón de uso:
to relieve [pain/stress/tension]
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes confuse 'relieve' with 'release'; 'release' means to let go physically or metaphorically, while 'relieve' means to reduce discomfort.
Sinónimos
ease (Softer tone, often used for gradual reduction of pain or discomfort.)
|
alleviate (More formal, common in medical or academic contexts.)
Antónimos
aggravate (Means to make a problem, pain, or feeling worse.)
Colocaciones
relieve pain
|relieve stress
|relieve tension
|relieve pressure
Temas
health
|emotions
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- The medicine helped relieve her back pain.
- A short walk can relieve stress after work.
- He took deep breaths to relieve his anxiety.
- Ice packs can relieve swelling after an injury.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- This tea will relieve your headache.
- A hot bath can relieve tired muscles.
- She listens to music to relieve stress.
- The doctor gave me pills to relieve the pain.
Verbo
B2
action
2
Take someone's place in duty
To do someone's job so that they can stop for a time.
Patrón de uso:
to relieve [someone] [of/from] duty
Error frecuente:
Learners may confuse 'relieve' with 'release' here; 'release' means to let go, while 'relieve' means to take over responsibility.
Sinónimos
replace (General term for taking someone's position, without implying rest.)
|
substitute for (Focuses on acting in place of someone temporarily.)
Antónimos
assign (Means to give someone a task rather than take it away.)
Colocaciones
relieve a guard
|relieve a worker
|relieve someone of duty
Temas
work
|military
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- The night shift will relieve the day crew at 6 p.m.
- A new officer was sent to relieve the guard at the gate.
- She relieved her colleague so he could take a lunch break.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- I will relieve you at 5 o'clock.
- The new worker relieved the tired man.
- He relieved the guard at midnight.
- She relieved her friend so he could eat lunch.
Verbo
B2
action
3
Remove from position or duty
To take someone out of their job, often because they did something wrong.
Patrón de uso:
to relieve [someone] of [a position/duty]
Error frecuente:
Learners may misunderstand this as giving relief or comfort; here it means removal from a role.
Sinónimos
dismiss (Common in workplace contexts; more formal and final.)
|
fire (Informal and direct; often used in everyday speech.)
Antónimos
appoint (Means to give someone a position rather than remove them.)
Colocaciones
relieve someone of command
|relieve someone of their post
Temas
work
|law
|business
Ejemplos
- The captain was relieved of his command after the incident.
- They decided to relieve her of her duties immediately.
- He was relieved of his post following the investigation.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- The boss relieved him of his job.
- They relieved her of her duties.
- The general was relieved of command.
- He was relieved of his post.
Verbo
B2
action
4
Make a bad situation less severe
To make a bad problem smaller or easier to deal with.
Patrón de uso:
to relieve [a problem/situation]
Sinónimos
mitigate (More formal; often used in business or policy contexts.)
|
ease (Less formal; focuses on making something easier.)
Antónimos
worsen (Means to make something more serious or severe.)
Colocaciones
relieve congestion
|relieve pressure on resources
Temas
problems
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- New roads were built to relieve traffic congestion.
- The charity aims to relieve poverty in the region.
- Better planning could relieve pressure on the hospital system.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- We planted trees to relieve air pollution.
- Extra buses will relieve traffic in the city.
- They want to relieve hunger in poor areas.
Gramática
Forma de diccionario
relieve
AFI
GB/ɹɪlˈiv/
US/ɹɪlˈiv/
Sílabas y acento
re - lieve (2 sílabas)
Stress on 2nd syllable (lieve)
Formas de la palabra
Verb
- Base: relieve
- 3rd Person Singular: relieves
- Present Participle: relieving
- Past: relieved
Familia de palabras
Forms
relieves
verb
relieving
verb
relieved
verb
Core family
relief
noun A2
Related words
reliever
noun
Negative and opposite forms
unrelieved
adjective
Expresiones
relieve oneself
1/ɹɪlˈiv wˌʌnsˈɛlf/
fixed phrase
Urinating or defecating
A polite way to say go to the toilet.
Ejemplos
- He stepped behind the bushes to relieve himself.
- Please excuse me, I need to relieve myself.
relieve pressure
1/ɹɪlˈiv pɹˈɛʃɚ/
fixed phrase
Reduce pressure or strain
To make less pressure or stress on something or someone.
Ejemplos
- Opening the valve will relieve pressure in the tank.
- Taking breaks can relieve pressure at work.
relieve tension
1/ɹɪlˈiv tˈɛnʃən/
fixed phrase
Make tension less severe
To make stress or tight muscles feel better.
Ejemplos
- A massage can help relieve tension in your shoulders.
- Jokes helped relieve tension in the meeting room.
relieve the boredom
1/ɹɪlˈiv ðə bˈɔɹdəm/
fixed phrase
Make boredom go away
To do something so you are not bored anymore.
Ejemplos
- The game helped relieve the boredom during the long trip.
- She read a book to relieve the boredom of waiting.