rest

Less common meanings

11. 11
    nouneuphemisticuncountable

    A peaceful final state after death; also, a gentle way of referring to death itself.

    The epitaph spoke of her rest as a release from years of pain.

    Mourners gathered to see the soldier brought to his final rest.

    UsageLaid to rest is the usual phrase for a burial; plain reports say buried.

    Similarpeace

    Note

    This is a gentle way to speak of death and burial, suited to funerals, epitaphs and elegy. Laid to rest is the usual phrase for a burial, and George William Russell writes of going "to my rest" in the same spirit. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

    • George William Russell wrote of going “to my rest”; the words occur in The Protest of Love. gutenberg.org
12. 12
    verbreflexivetransitive

    To give something relief by placing it in a state of stillness or relaxation.

    Coaches often rest their best players before an important match.

    He rested his voice for a day after the concert.

    UsageThe object is who or what stops: rest your best players, rest your voice.

    Similarspare, bench

    Oppositestrain, overwork, tax

    Note

    Here someone else is made to stop. You rest the horses before riding on, and a manager rests key players before a big match, as Harry Redknapp did at Spurs in 2011. Older English could use it reflexively: Sir Thomas Malory's knights "rested them all nyght" at a priory, where modern speakers would simply say they rested. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

    • Harry Redknapp rested key Spurs players before a major match in 2011. en.wiktionary.org
    • Older English used rest reflexively, as illustrated by Malory's knights resting at a priory. gutenberg.org
    • The quoted wording is attributed to Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, Book X, and describes resting at a priory. en.wiktionary.org
13. 13
    peace of mindnoununcountable

    A state of peace and tranquility, free from worry, anxiety, or disturbance.

    For months after the accident he knew no rest, tormented by the thought that he might have prevented it.

    She found no rest while her brother was still missing.

    Similarpeace, quiet, tranquility

    Oppositeturmoil, disquiet, agitation, unrest

    Note

    Peace can belong to a person or to a whole people. The King James Bible of 1611 says "the land had rest fourscore years," meaning a long stretch without trouble. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • The King James Bible was first published in 1611. loc.gov
    • The quotation occurs in the King James Bible, in Judges 3:30. en.wikisource.org
    • The quoted rest describes a prolonged period of peace. biblegateway.com
14. 14
    end a caseverbUStransitive or intransitive

    In a legal trial, to finish presenting one's case and then wait for the outcome.

    The attorney chose to rest her case without calling more witnesses.

    Once both sides had rested, the judge instructed the jury.

    UsageFixed formulas: The defense rests, I rest my case; in everyday talk, I rest my case means that proves my point.

    Similarconclude, close, finish

    Note

    This is a courtroom formula in US legal practice. Resting is not leaving the case: the lawyer generally stays available to answer questions until the outcome. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Resting does not end the lawyer's participation in the trial. ilcd.uscourts.gov
    • Counsel generally remain available during deliberations for questions and the verdict. txs.uscourts.gov
15. 15
    verbintransitive

    To continue to be, or to be left, in a particular state or condition.

    Customers can rest assured that their payment details are encrypted.

    Parents can rest assured that a trained lifeguard watches the pool at all times.

    UsageMostly in rest assured, telling someone they can stop worrying: rest assured that your data is safe.

    Similarremain, stay

    Note

    The verb goes with the borrowed "remainder" noun: it comes from Old French rester, "to remain," and is unrelated to the native verb for stopping work. Rest you merry is an older wish meaning "stay merry," with you set between the verb and its adjective. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

    • The remainder noun is borrowed from French and shares its origin with this verb. en.wiktionary.org
    • The verb comes from Old French rester, meaning 'to remain'. en.wiktionary.org
    • The verb for stopping work has a separate native Germanic origin. en.wiktionary.org
    • 'Rest you merry' is an older farewell wish meaning 'stay merry'. media.shakespeare.org.uk
16. 16
    silence (music)nouncountable

    In music, a pause of a set length, or the written symbol in a score that marks it.

    The conductor held the orchestra silent through a two-beat rest.

    A well-placed rest can build tension before the final phrase.

    Similarpause, silence

    Note

    Musicians count silence as carefully as sound, and a rest is the counted part. Its length is fixed by note value (whole, half, quarter and so on), so players speak of a two-beat rest or a rest at the end of the fourth bar. The pause belongs to the rhythm and is not a break in the performance. The same word names the mark that shows it on the page. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

    • Rests are counted periods of silence within the performance's rhythm. harp.com
    • Rest values correspond to note values, and rests have written symbols. open.edu
    • A rest is part of the music rather than an interruption of the performance, and the word also denotes its notation. en.wikipedia.org
17. 17
    verbintransitive

    To be free from what disturbs or troubles you; to be quiet, still, and undisturbed.

    His conscience would not let him rest until he had apologized to his brother.

    As long as the letter remained missing, her mind could not rest, and she searched every drawer in the house.

    UsageOften negative: her mind could not rest.

    Similarrelax, settle, repose, sleep

18. 18
    verbintransitive

    To lie dormant; to remain inactive or unused for a time.

    The fields rest through the cold months before planting begins.

    Under the old system, a third of the land was left to rest each year so that the soil could recover.

    Similarlie, idle

19. 19
    stop thereverbintransitive

    To arrive at a pause or a stopping point; to come to an end.

    Don't expect the story to rest there; reporters will be digging for weeks.

    The matter rested there for nearly a decade, until a new witness came forward.

    UsageOften rest there: the matter rested there for years.

    Similarstop, end, cease, lie, drop

    Oppositecontinue, resume

20. 20
    be satisfiedverbintransitive

    To be satisfied with something and accept it without further objection.

    Unwilling to rest satisfied with a vague apology, the customers demanded a full refund.

    He refused to rest satisfied with second place.

    UsageUsually in rest satisfied with or rest content with; the older pattern without an adjective is rest in a decision.

    Note

    Contentment is framed as stillness: to rest in a decision is to stop resisting it. Joseph Addison's Cato has "to rest in Heaven's determination," a resigned acceptance of fate. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Joseph Addison wrote Cato. en.wikipedia.org
    • Cato contains the quoted wording, expressing acceptance of divine determination. The character speaking is Lucius. en.wikisource.org
21. 21
    cue supportnouncountable

    In cue sports, a long stick with a U-, V- or X-shaped head that supports the front of the cue's shaft in place of the hand when the cue ball is out of reach.

    The player asked for the rest to bridge over the cluster of red balls.

    She positioned the rest carefully before striking the distant cue ball.

    Similarbridge

    Note

    In snooker talk the stick is the rest, with the definite article, and a player uses it or calls for it. A commentator might note that a player cannot reach the white with his cue and so will be using the rest. The white is the cue ball. The rest takes over from the hand when the hand cannot bridge that far. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

    • The white ball is the cue ball in snooker. wpbsa.com
    • A rest substitutes for the supporting hand when a shot cannot comfortably be reached with a hand bridge. en.wikipedia.org
22. 22
    poetry pausenouncountable or uncountable

    A short pause in reading a line of poetry; a caesura.

    Reading the sonnet aloud, she paused at the rest in the middle of each line, letting its two halves balance.

    A rest at the caesura lets the listener absorb the first half of the line.

    Similarcaesura, pause, break

    Note

    Prosody borrows the word for the pause that falls inside a line of verse, the break technically called a caesura. It is a reader's pause, often marked by punctuation. That sets it apart from the musical rest, whose length is counted exactly. In verse the pause is felt, shaped by the sense and the meter of the line. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

    • Rest can mean a pause in reading poetry, technically called a caesura. en.wiktionary.org
    • A caesura is a pause in reading that can also be indicated by printed punctuation. poets.org
    • A musical rest has a specified, measurable duration. en.wikipedia.org
    • Sense and meter shape pauses in verse. gutenberg.org
23. 23
    tennis setnoundatedcountable or uncountable

    A set or game within a match of tennis.

    Similarset, game

24. 24
    verbtransitive or intransitivecooking

    To be left untouched for a while before cutting, serving, or further cooking, as cooked meat or dough is; also, to leave food standing like that.

    Steaks should rest on a warm plate so the juices settle back into the meat.

    Many bakers rest their bread dough in the fridge overnight to develop flavor.

    UsageWorks both ways: let the meat rest or rest the meat.

    Similarstand, sit

    Note

    The reason for the pause changes with the food. A roast keeps cooking in its own heat and loses less juice when carved; dough rests between mixing and shaping so the gluten relaxes and it rolls out without springing back. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • A roast continues cooking from retained heat while resting. en.wikipedia.org
    • Resting meat reduces the liquid lost during carving. en.wikipedia.org
    • Resting dough before rolling allows gluten to relax, making rolling easier and reducing shrinkage. kingarthurbaking.com
25. 25
    noun

    The striking of a balance in a running account at regular intervals, often the points at which compound interest is added to the capital.
26. 26
    noun

    A projection on the right side of a suit of armor, used to support the lance.
27. 27
    nounUK

    A bank's reserve of surplus profit, kept to hold dividends steady, and at the Bank of England, what assets come to beyond liabilities.
28. 28
    verbobsolete

    To keep someone or something in a given state, as in 'God rest you merry'.
29. 29
    verbobsolete

    To take someone into custody.