relax

/rɪˈlæks/

verb★Beginner— to become less tense or anxious

informal

to make or become less tense or anxious

He needs to relax before the big presentation.

He should calm down to reduce nervousness.

The music helps me relax after work.

The music soothes me and reduces my stress.

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Often used with prepositions like 'with' (e.g., relax with a book) or 'by' (e.g., relax by listening to music).

Collocations

relax withto unwind by doing something enjoyablerelax byto unwind through a specific activity

to loosen one's hold physically or metaphorically

to make rules less strict

Use 'relax with' for activities (e.g., relax with a book) and 'relax by' for methods (e.g., relax by listening to music).

Use 'relax' transitively for body parts (e.g., relax your shoulders) and intransitively for general stress relief (e.g., I need to relax).

From Latin 'relaxare' (to loosen), from 're-' (back) + 'laxare' (to loosen).

Can be used both transitively (e.g., 'relax your shoulders') and intransitively (e.g., 'I need to relax').

re-

back

prefix

-lax

loosen

root

English Dictionary