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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Relief \Re*lief"\ (r?-l?f"), noun [OE. relef, F. relief, properly, a lifting up, a standing out. See {Relieve}, and cf. {Basrelief}, {Rilievi}.]
1. The act of relieving, or the state of being relieved; the removal, or partial removal, of any evil, or of anything oppressive or burdensome, by which some ease is obtained; succor; alleviation; comfort; ease; redress.
He sees the dire contagion spread so fast, That, where it seizes, all relief is vain. --Dryden.
2. Release from a post, or from the performance of duty, by the intervention of others, by discharge, or by relay; as, a relief of a sentry.
For this relief much thanks; 'tis bitter cold. --Shak.
3. That which removes or lessens evil, pain, discomfort, uneasiness, etc.; that which gives succor, aid, or comfort; also, the person who relieves from performance of duty by taking the place of another; a relay.
4. (Feudal Law) A fine or composition which the heir of a deceased tenant paid to the lord for the privilege of taking up the estate, which, on strict feudal principles, had lapsed or fallen to the lord on the death of the tenant.
5. (Sculp. & Arch.) The projection of a figure above the ground or plane on which it is formed.
Note: Relief is of three kinds, namely, {high relief} ({altorilievo}), {low relief}, ({basso-rilievo}), and {demirelief} ({mezzo-rilievo}). See these terms in the Vocabulary.
6. (Paint.) The appearance of projection given by shading, shadow, etc., to any figure.
7. (Fort.) The height to which works are raised above the bottom of the ditch. --Wilhelm.
8. (Physical Geog.) The elevations and surface undulations of a country. --Guyot.
{Relief valve}, a valve arranged for relieving pressure of steam, gas, or liquid; an escape valve.
Syn: Alleviation; mitigation; aid; help; succor; assistance; remedy; redress; indemnification.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
relief
noun
1: the feeling that comes when something burdensome is removed or reduced; "as he heard the news he was suddenly flooded with relief" [syn: {alleviation}, {assuagement}]
2: the condition of being comfortable or relieved (especially after being relieved of distress); "he enjoyed his relief from responsibility"; "getting it off his conscience gave him some ease" [syn: {ease}]
3: (law) redress awarded by a court; "was the relief supposed to be protection from future harm or compensation for past injury?"
4: someone who takes the place of another (as when things get dangerous or difficult); "the star had a stand-in for dangerous scenes"; "we need extra employees for summer fill-ins" [syn: {stand-in}, {substitute}, {reliever}, {backup}, {backup man}, {fill-in}]
5: assistance in time of difficulty; "the contributions provided some relief for the victims" [syn: {succor}, {succour}, {ministration}]
6: a pause for relaxation; "people actually accomplish more when they take time for short rests" [syn: {respite}, {rest}, {rest period}]
7: a change for the better [syn: {easing}, {moderation}]
8: aid for the aged or indigent or handicapped; "he has been on relief for many years"
9: the act of reducing something unpleasant (as pain or annoyance); "he asked the nurse for relief from the constant pain" [syn: {easing}, {easement}, {alleviation}]
10: sculpture consisting of shapes carved on a surface so as to stand out from the surrounding background [syn: {relievo}, {rilievo}, {embossment}, {sculptural relief}]
11: the act of freeing a city or town that has been besieged; "he asked for troops for the relief of Atlanta"
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
339 Moby Thesaurus words for "relief": ADC, CYSP sculpture, Medicaid, Medicare, abatement, agent, aid, aid and comfort, alimony, allayment, alleviation, allotment, allowance, alterative, alternate, alternative, anaglyph, anaglyptics, anaglyptography, analeptic, analogy, annuity, appeasement, architectural sculpture, assist, assistance, assuagement, assurance, auxiliaries, backup, balm, balsam, bas-relief, bellying, benefit, benevolence, boldness, bone-carving, boss, bounty, bout, break, bulging, cameo, cameo glass, casting, cavo-rilievo, ceroplastics, chance, change, changeling, chasing, clay sculpture, clemency, coffee break, comfort, commiseration, comparison, compassion, condolence, configuration, consolation, contour, contrast, copy, corrective, counterfeit, cradle-to-grave security, cure, cut glass, decorative sculpture, delineation, deliverance, depletion allowance, deputy, disburdening, disencumberment, dole, double, downtime, dummy, earth art, ease, easement, easing, elevation, embossing, embossment, eminence, encouragement, engraving, equal, equivalent, ersatz, exchange, excrescence, excrescency, extrusion, fake, favor, features, feeling, fellowship, figuration, figure, fill-in, financial assistance, forbearance, forgiveness, founding, framework, garden sculpture, gem-cutting, gestalt, ghost, ghostwriter, gibbosity, gibbousness, glass sculpture, glyph, glyptic, glyptograph, go, good offices, grace, grant, grant-in-aid, guaranteed annual income, guaranteed income, half time, half-time intermission, hand, healing agent, healing quality, health insurance, help, high relief, holiday, humanity, imitation, inning, innings, intaglio, intaglio rilevato, intaglio rilievo, interim, interlude, intermezzo, intermission, intermittence, interregnum, interruption, interval, ivory-carving, kindness, leniency, letup, liberation, lift, lightening, lineaments, lines, locum tenens, lost-wax process, low relief, lull, main features, makeshift, mask, medal, medallion, mercy, metal sculpture, metaphor, metonymy, ministration, ministry, mitigation, modeling, molding, mollification, monumental sculpture, next best thing, off-time, office, offices, old-age assistance, old-age insurance, opportunity, outline, paper sculpture, pardon, pathos, pause, pecuniary aid, pension, personnel, phony, pinch hitter, pity, place, plaquette, plaster casting, plastic art, plateau, point of repose, portrait sculpture, prescription, price support, profile, projection, prominence, protection, protrusion, protuberance, protuberancy, proxy, public assistance, public welfare, quarter, quiet spell, reassurance, receipt, recess, recipe, redress, reinforcements, release, relief-carving, relievo, remedial measure, remedy, remission, replacement, representative, reprieve, rescue, reserve forces, reserves, respite, resting point, restorative, retirement benefits, ringer, round, ruth, salience, salient, say, scholarship, sculptor, sculpture, sculptured glass, sculpturing, second string, secondary, self-pity, service, shapes, shell-carving, shred of comfort, sickness insurance, sign, silhouette, skeleton, social insurance, social security, social welfare, socialized medicine, softening, solace, solacement, sovereign remedy, spares, specific, specific remedy, spell, stand-in, state medicine, statuary, stipend, stone sculpture, stonecutting, sub, subsidization, subsidy, substituent, substitute, substitution, subvention, succedaneum, succor, superseder, supplanter, support, surrogate, symbol, sympathy, synecdoche, tax benefit, therapy, third string, time, time at bat, time off, time out, token, tournure, tuberosity, tuberousness, turn, unballasting, unburdening, understudy, unemployment compensation, unemployment insurance, unfreighting, unlading, unloading, unsaddling, untaxing, utility player, vacation, vicar, vice-president, vice-regent, welfare, welfare aid, welfare capitalism, welfare payments, welfare state, welfare statism, welfarism, whack, whittling, wire sculpture, womb-to-tomb security, wood carving, xyloglyphy
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