rest
rest Lexical Profile
rest Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A state or period of relaxing, sleeping, or ceasing to engage in strenuous activity in order to recover strength.
"The doctor advised her to get plenty of rest while recovering from the flu."
The remaining part, quantity, or members of something after a portion has been removed, used, or accounted for.
"We ate half of the lasagne for dinner and saved the rest for tomorrow's lunch."
An object, stand, or fixture designed to hold, prop up, or support something in a steady position.
"He adjusted the padded chin rest on his violin before the orchestra rehearsal began."
An interval of silence of a specified duration in a piece of music, or the written notation symbol that indicates it.
"The conductor reminded the brass section to count carefully through the four-measure rest."
• verb
To cease work or physical movement in order to relax, sleep, or recover strength.
"After hiking up the steep trail for three hours, the group stopped by a mountain stream to rest."
To place, lean, or be supported on or against a surface so as to remain steady or balanced.
"She rested her elbows on the wooden desk while reading the manuscript."
To be based on, depend on, or be the responsibility of someone or something (usually followed by 'on' or 'with').
"The validity of the researcher's hypothesis rests on three decades of climate data."
To remain in a specified state or allow a subject or legal case to remain without further action or discussion.
"After calling the final witness to the stand, the defense attorney announced that she would rest her case."
Word Nuance & Usage
'Rest' is actually a homograph combining two distinct historical words: the sense of 'repose' comes from Old English, whereas the sense of 'remainder' (normally preceded by 'the', as in 'the rest of the day') derives from French and Latin.
• Rhymes for rest
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
In the sense of repose or sleep, the word derives from Old English 'rest', from Proto-Germanic *rasto (originally meaning a league or a distance after which one stops to rest). In the sense of a remainder or what is left over, it was borrowed in Middle English from Old French 'reste', from Latin 'restare' ('to remain or stand back').