• enPR: rĕst, IPA: /ɹɛst/

From Middle English rest, reste, from Old English ræst, from Proto-West Germanic *rastu, from Proto-Germanic *rastō, from Proto-Indo-European *ros-, *res-, *erH-.

rest

1. (uncountable, of a person or animal) Relief from work or activity by sleeping; sleep.

   I need to get a good rest tonight; I was up late last night.

   The sun sets, and the workers go to their rest.

   Synonyms: sleep, slumber

2. (countable) Any relief from exertion; a state of quiet and relaxation.

   We took a rest at the top of the hill to get our breath back.

   Synonyms: break, repose, time off

3. (uncountable) Peace; freedom from worry, anxiety, annoyances; tranquility.

   It was nice to have a rest from the phone ringing when I unplugged it for a while.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Judges 3:30 ↗:

     And the land had rest fourscore years.

   Synonyms: peace, quiet, roo, silence, stillness, tranquility

4. (uncountable, of an object or concept) A state of inactivity; a state of little or no motion; a state of completion.

   The boulder came to rest just behind the house after rolling down the mountain.

   The ocean was finally at rest.

   Now that we're all in agreement, we can put that issue to rest.

5. (euphemistic, uncountable) A final position after death. Also, death itself: "Not alone, not alone would I go to my rest in the heart of the love..." -- George William Russell ("Love")

   She was laid to rest in the village cemetery.

   Synonyms: peace

6. (music, countable) A pause of a specified length in a piece of music.

   Remember there's a rest at the end of the fourth bar.

   Hyponyms: breve rest, demisemiquaver rest, hemidemisemiquaver rest, minim rest, quaver rest, semibreve rest, semiquaver rest

7. (music, countable) A written symbol indicating such a pause in a musical score such as in sheet music.
8. (physics, uncountable) Absence of motion.

   The body's centre of gravity may affect its state of rest.

   Antonyms: motion

9. (snooker, countable) A stick with a U-, V- or X-shaped head used to support the tip of a cue when the cue ball is otherwise out of reach.

   Higgins can't quite reach the white with his cue, so he'll be using the rest.

   Hypernyms: bridge

10. (countable) Any object designed to be used to support something else.

    She put the phone receiver back in its rest.

    He placed his hands on the arm rests of the chair.

    Synonyms: cradle, support

    Hyponyms: arm rest, elbow rest, foot rest, head rest, leg rest, neck rest, wrist rest

11. A projection from the right side of the cuirass of armour, serving to support the lance.
    • 1700, [John] Dryden, “The Flower and the Leaf: Or, The Lady in the Arbour. A Vision.”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC ↗:

      their visors closed, their lances in the rest

12. A place where one may rest, either temporarily, as in an inn, or permanently, as, in an abode.
    • c. 1851, Catholicus (pen name of John Henry Newman, letter in The Times

      halfway houses and travellers' rests

    • 1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC ↗; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC ↗:

      in dust our final rest, and native home

    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Deuteronomy xii:9 ↗:

      Ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the Lord your God giveth you.

13. (poetry) A short pause in reading poetry; a caesura.
14. The striking of a balance at regular intervals in a running account. Often, specifically, the intervals after which compound interest is added to capital.
15. (dated) A set or game at tennis.

• activity

• French: repos
• German: Ruhe, Erholung
• Italian: riposo
• Portuguese: repouso, descanso
• Russian: о́тдых
• Spanish: reposo

• French: repos
• German: Pause
• Italian: riposo
• Portuguese: descanso, repouso
• Russian: о́тдых
• Spanish: descanso, reposo, holganza

• French: paix, repos, (literary) quiétude
• German: Ruhe
• Italian: pace
• Portuguese: paz, tranquilidade
• Russian: поко́й
• Spanish: reposo

• French: paix, repos
• German: Ruhe
• Portuguese: descanso, descanso eterno
• Russian: поко́й

• French: pause
• German: Pause
• Portuguese: pausa
• Russian: па́уза
• Spanish: pausa

• French: silence, pause
• German: Pausenzeichen
• Italian: pausa
• Russian: па́уза
• Spanish: pausa

• French: repos
• German: Ruhe, Stillstand
• Portuguese: repouso
• Russian: поко́й
• Spanish: reposo

• French: reposoir
• German: Hilfsqueue
• Russian: подста́вка
• Spanish: puente mecánico

• French: support
• German: Lehne
• Portuguese: apoio
• Russian: подста́вка
• Spanish: descanso, brazo (chair)

• French: gîte

From Middle English resten, from Old English restan, from Proto-West Germanic *rastijan, from Proto-Indo-European *ros-, *res-, *erH-.

rest (rests, present participle resting; simple past and past participle rested)

1. (intransitive) To cease from action, motion, work, or performance of any kind; stop; desist; be without motion.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Exodus 23:12 ↗:

     Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest.

2. (intransitive) To come to a pause or an end; end.
3. (intransitive) To be free from that which harasses or disturbs; be quiet or still; be undisturbed.
   • 1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC ↗; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC ↗:

     There rest, if any rest can harbour there.

4. (intransitive, transitive, reflexive, copulative) To be or to put into a state of rest.

   My day's work is over; now I will rest.

   We need to rest the horses before we ride any further.

   I shall not rest until I have uncovered the truth.

   • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte d'Arthur, Book X:

     And thereby at a pryory they rested them all nyght.

5. (intransitive) To stay, remain, be situated.

   The blame seems to rest with your father.

6. (transitive, intransitive, reflexive) To lean, lie, or lay.

   A column rests on its pedestal.

   I rested my head in my hands.

   She rested against my shoulder.

   I rested against the wall for a minute.

7. (intransitive, transitive, legal, US) To complete one's active advocacy in a trial or other proceeding, and thus to wait for the outcome (however, one is still generally available to answer questions, etc.)

   The defense rests, your Honor.

   I rest my case.

8. (intransitive) To sleep; slumber.
9. (intransitive) To lie dormant.
10. (intransitive) To sleep the final sleep; sleep in death; die; be dead.
    • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC ↗, Canto XXI, page 35 ↗:

      I sing to him that rests below,
      ⁠And, since the grasses round me wave,
      ⁠I take the grasses of the grave,
      And make them pipes whereon to blow.

11. (intransitive) To rely or depend on.

    The decision rests on getting a bank loan.

    • 1700, John Dryden, Sigismonda and Guiscardo:

      On him I rested, after long debate, / And not without considering, fixed fate.

12. To be satisfied; to acquiesce.
    • 1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC ↗, Act I, scene ii, page 1 ↗:

      to rest in Heaven's determination

• (lie down and take repose, especially by sleeping) relax
• (give rest to) relieve
• (stop working) have a breather, pause, take a break, take time off, take time out
• (be situated) be, lie, remain, reside, stay
• (transitive: lean, lay) lay, lean, place, put
• (intransitive: lie, lean) lean, lie

• French: reposer, faire une pause
• German: ruhen, erholen
• Italian: riposarsi, riposare
• Portuguese: descansar, repousar
• Russian: отдыха́ть
• Spanish: descansar, reposar

• French: cesser

• French: s'arrêter
• Russian: отдыха́ть

• French: rester
• Russian: остава́ться

• French: reposer
• Italian: appoggiarsi, posarsi

• French: reposer
• Italian: reggersi
• Portuguese: repousar, deitar

• French: en finir
• Spanish: desistir

From Middle English reste, from Old French reste, from Old French rester, from Latin restō, from re- + stō.

• enPR: rĕst, IPA: /ɹɛst/

rest (uncountable)

1. (uncountable) That which remains.

   Synonyms: lave, remainder

   She ate some of the food, but was not hungry enough to eat it all, so she put the rest in the refrigerator to finish later.

2. Those not included in a proposition or description; the remainder; others.
   • 1676, Bishop Stillingfleet, A Defence of the Discourse Concerning the Idolatry Practised in the Church of Rome:

     Plato and the rest of the philosophers

   • 1697, Virgil, translated by John Dryden, The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC ↗:

     Arm'd like the rest, the Trojan prince appears.

   • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter XI, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC ↗:

     The rest of us were engaged in various occupations: Mr. Trevor relating experiences of steamboat days on the Ohio to Mrs. Cooke; Miss Trevor buried in a serial in the Century; and Farrar and I taking an inventory of the fishing-tackle, when we were startled by a loud and profane ejaculation.

3. (UK, finance) A surplus held as a reserved fund by a bank to equalize its dividends, etc.; in the Bank of England, the balance of assets above liabilities.

• (that which remains) See also Thesaurus:remainder

• French: reste
• German: Rest
• Italian: resto
• Portuguese: resto, sobra
• Russian: оста́ток
• Spanish: resto, sobra, demás

From Middle English resten, from Old French rester, from Latin restō.

rest (rests, present participle resting; simple past and past participle rested)

1. (no object, with complement) To continue to be, remain, be left in a certain way.

   You can rest assured that a sick child will say when it's again ready to eat, so it won't starve and doesn't need to be cajoled into eating.

   Rest you merry. "Be glad, be joyful"; later: "Good luck to you."

2. (transitive, obsolete) To keep a certain way.

   God rest you merry, gentlemen. "May God grant you happiness and peace, gentlemen"; literally: "May God keep you happy and in peace, gentlemen."

Aphetic form of arrest.

rest (rests, present participle resting; simple past and past participle rested)

1. (obsolete, transitive, colloquial) To arrest.

• enPR: rĕst, IPA: /ɹɛst/

rest (uncountable)

1. (computing) Acronym of representational state transfer

1. (linguistics) Acronym of Generative grammar#Revised extended standard theory (1973–1976)