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Respite Has Latin Roots
Everyone needs a little R & R from time to time. That's where respite comes in handy: this word was first used in the 14th century to refer to a delay or extension asked for or granted for a specific reason, such as to give someone time to deliberate on a proposal. This kind of respite offered an opportunity for the kind of consideration inherent in this word's etymology: respite traces from the Latin term respectus (also the source of English's respect), which comes from respicere, a verb with both concrete and abstract meanings: "to turn around to look at" or "to regard." Within a few decades of its earliest known use, English speakers had granted respite the sense we use most often today—"a welcome break."
Examples of respite in a Sentence
Martha Southgate, The Fall of Rome, 2002
Six years more of toil they had to face before they could expect the least respite, the cessation of the payments upon the house …
—Upton Sinclair, The Jungle, 1906
The laborer's day ends with the going down of the sun … but his employer, who speculates from month to month, has no respite from one end of the year to the other.
—Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854
The bad weather has continued without respite.
Brenna Gauchat, The Arizona Republic, 28 June 2024
Tribeca’s Roxy Hotel and its underground jazz club, Django, which provided the perfect respite from midsummer heat.
—Vogue Club, Vogue, 26 June 2024
The Spa The spa offers respite from Agra’s bustling tourist hotspots and busy roads (made more narrow by groups of cows, fruit stands, and market stalls) with a menu of Western and Eastern treatments.
—Claudia Fisher, Travel + Leisure, 8 July 2024
He’s done it for years – a welcome respite for a few unburdened hours.
—Sarah Matusek, The Christian Science Monitor, 3 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for respite 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'respite.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near respite
Cite this Entry
“Respite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/respite. Accessed 15 Jul. 2024.
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respite
noun
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