# leisure

Pronunciation: US say "LEZH-ur" /ˈlɛʒə(ɹ)/; UK say "LEZH-uh" /ˈlɛʒə(ɹ)/

## Noun

1. Time that is free from work or other obligations and available for one's own use.
   - Simple: Time when you are free from work or other duties.
   - _Retirement gave them ample leisure to travel and revisit old hobbies._
   - _Modern appliances have left many workers with more leisure than earlier generations enjoyed._
2. The sense of freedom that results when one's activities or duties have come to an end.
   - Simple: Freedom you feel once your work and tasks have stopped.
   - _The close of the planting season brought the farmers a leisure they rarely knew._
   - _Once the long trial ended, the lawyer sank into an unfamiliar leisure._
3. Time wholly at one's own disposal, free from engagement; a convenient opportunity to act, and hence the unhurried ease that comes with it.
   - Simple: Time you can use as you like, with no rush and no duties to meet.
   - _Visitors may wander the gardens at their leisure throughout the afternoon._
   - _He promised to answer the lengthy letter at his leisure, once the guests had gone._

## Origin

From Middle English leyser, borrowed from Anglo-Norman leisir, a variant of Old French loisir ("to enjoy oneself"), which was the noun use of a verb going back to Latin licēre ("be permitted"). It displaced the native Old English word ǣmetta.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/leisure (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).