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Webster 1913 Edition

Ease

Ease

(ēz)
,
Noun.
[OE.
ese
,
eise
, F.
aise
; akin to Pr.
ais
,
aise
, OIt.
asio
, It.
agio
; of uncertain origin; cf. L.
ansa
handle, occasion, opportunity. Cf.
Agio
,
Disease
.]
1.
Satisfaction; pleasure; hence, accommodation; entertainment.
[Obs.]
They him besought
Of harbor and or
ease
as for hire penny.
Chaucer.
2.
Freedom from anything that pains or troubles; as:
(a)
Relief from labor or effort; rest; quiet; relaxation;
as,
ease
of body
.
Usefulness comes by labor, wit by
ease
.
Herbert.
(b)
Freedom from care, solicitude, or anything that annoys or disquiets; tranquillity; peace; comfort; security; as, ease of mind.
Among these nations shalt thou find no
ease
.
Deut. xxviii. 65.
(c)
Freedom from constraint, formality, difficulty, embarrassment, etc.; facility; liberty; naturalness; – said of manner, style, etc.;
as,
ease
of style, of behavior, of address
.
True
ease
in writing comes from art, not chance.
Pope.
Whate’er he did was done with so much
ease
,
In him alone 't was natural to please.
Dryden.
Syn. – Rest; quiet; repose; comfortableness; tranquillity; facility; easiness; readiness.

Ease

(ēz)
,
Verb.
T.
&
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Eased
(ēzd)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Easing
.]
[OE.
esen
,
eisen
, OF.
aisier
. See
Ease
,
Noun.
]
1.
To free from anything that pains, disquiets, or oppresses; to relieve from toil or care; to give rest, repose, or tranquillity to; – often with of;
as, to
ease
of pain; to
ease
the body or mind.
Eased
[from] the putting off
These troublesome disguises which we wear.
Milton.
Sing, and I 'll
ease
thy shoulders of thy load.
Dryden.
2.
To render less painful or oppressive; to mitigate; to alleviate.
My couch shall
ease
my complaint.
Job vii. 13.
3.
To release from pressure or restraint; to move gently; to lift slightly; to shift a little;
as, to
ease
a bar or nut in machinery
.
4.
To entertain; to furnish with accommodations.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.
Syn. – To relieve; disburden; quiet; calm; tranquilize; assuage; alleviate; allay; mitigate; appease; pacify.

Webster 1828 Edition

Ease

EASE

,
Noun.
s as z. [L. otium.]
1.
Rest; an undisturbed state. Applied to the body, freedom from pain, disturbance, excitement or annoyance. He sits at his ease. He takes his ease.
2.
Applied to the mind, a quiet state; tranquillity; freedom from pain, concern, anxiety, solicitude, or any thing that frets or ruffles the mind.
His soul shall dwell at ease. Ps.25.
Wo to them that are at ease in Zion. Amos.6.
3.
Rest from labor.
4.
Facility; freedom from difficulty or great labor. One man will perform this service with ease. This author writes with ease.
5.
Freedom from stiffness, harshness, forced expressions, or unnatural arrangement; as the ease of style.
6.
Freedom from constraint or formality; unaffectedness; as ease of behavior.
At ease, in an undisturbed state; free from pain or anxiety.

Definition 2024

ease

ease

English

Noun

ease ‎(uncountable)

  1. Ability, the means to do something, particularly:
    1. (obsolete) Opportunity, chance.
    2. Skill, dexterity, facility.
      He played the ukelele with ease.
  2. Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness, particularly:
    • For usage examples of this term, see Citations:ease.
    1. Freedom from pain, hardship, and annoyance, sometimes (pejorative, archaic) idleness, sloth.
      She enjoyed the ease of living in a house where the servants did all the work.
    2. Freedom from worry and concern, peace, sometimes (pejorative, archaic) indifference.
      The pension set her mind at ease.
    3. Freedom from difficulty.
      He passed all the exams with ease.
    4. Freedom from effort, leisure, rest.
      We took our ease on the patio.
    5. Freedom from financial effort or worry, affluence.
      His inheritance catapulted him into a life of ease.
    6. Freedom from embarrassment or awkwardness, grace.
      She dealt with the faculty with combined authority and ease.
  3. Relief, an end to discomfort, particularly:
    • For usage examples of this term, see Citations:ease.
    1. (with of or from) Release from or reduction of pain, hardship, or annoyance.
      Take one pill every 12 hours to provide ease from pain.
    2. (euphemistic, obsolete) Release from intestinal discomfort: defecation.
    3. Release from constraint, obligation, or a constrained position.
      At ease, soldier!
    4. (clothing) Additional space provided to allow greater movement.
      Add some ease to the waist measurement.
  4. (obsolete) A convenience; a luxury.
  5. (obsolete) A relief; an easement.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Verb

ease ‎(third-person singular simple present eases, present participle easing, simple past and past participle eased)

  1. (transitive) To free (something) from pain, worry, agitation, etc.
    He eased his conscience by confessing.
    • 2012 November 17, John Branch, “Snow Fall : The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek”, in New York Time:
      Elyse Saugstad, a professional skier, wore a backpack equipped with an air bag, a relatively new and expensive part of the arsenal that backcountry users increasingly carry to ease their minds and increase survival odds in case of an avalanche.
  2. (transitive) To alleviate, assuage or lessen (pain).
    He loosened his shoe to ease the pain.
  3. (transitive) To give respite to (someone).
    The provision of extra staff eased their workload.
  4. (transitive) To loosen or slacken the tension on (something).
    We eased the rope, then lowered the sail.
  5. (transitive) To reduce the difficulty of (something).
    We had to ease the entry requirements.
  6. (transitive) To move (something) slowly and carefully.
    He eased the cork from the bottle.
  7. (intransitive) To lessen in severity.
    The pain eased overnight.
  8. (intransitive) To proceed with little effort.
    The car eased onto the motorway.

Synonyms

Translations

References

  1. 1 2 Oxford English Dictionary. "ease, n." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1891.
  2. ↑ http://www.dictionary.com/browse/ease?s=t
  3. ↑ The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia. "ease".

Etymology

From Middle English ese, ays, &c., from Anglo-Norman ese ‎(“ease”), from Old French eise and aise ‎(“elbow room; opportunity”), sometimes ascribed to Latin *asia or *asium, possibly from ansa ‎(“handle; occasion”)[1] but more likely from a Vulgar Latin *adjace(m), from Latin adjacēns, present participle of adjaceō[2]. Alternatively, possibly from a non-Latin source such as Germanic or Celtic on the basis of the conflicting forms which appear in various Romance languages.[3] Cognate with Provencal ais, Italian agio and asio, and Portuguese azo.[1] Compare Old English ēaþe ‎(“easy”), Gothic 𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐌹 ‎(azēti, “ease; pleasure”), 𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐍃 ‎(azēts, “easy”), Breton eaz, ez ‎(“easy”), Irish adhais ‎(“easy; leisure”). Compare also Proto-Germanic *ansijō ‎(“loophole, eyelet; handle”). See also eath.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /iːz/
  • (US) IPA(key): /iz/,
  • Rhymes: -iːz
  • Homophones: ees, 'e's

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