(~s, easing, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
If you do something with ~, you do it easily, without difficulty or effort.
...the ~ with which young people could find work.
? difficulty
PHRASE: PHR after V
2.
If you talk about the ~ of a particular activity, you are referring to the way that it has been made easier to do, or to the fact that it is already easy to do.
For ~ of reference, only the relevant extracts of the regulations are included.
N-UNCOUNT: N of n
3.
Ease is the state of being very comfortable and able to live as you want, without any worries or problems.
She lived a life of ~.
= comfort
N-UNCOUNT
4.
If something unpleasant ~s or if you ~ it, it is reduced in degree, speed, or intensity.
Tensions had ~d...
I gave him some brandy to ~ the pain.
...editorials calling for the easing of sanctions.
VERB: V, V n, V-ing
5.
If you ~ your way somewhere or ~ somewhere, you move there slowly, carefully, and gently. If you ~ something somewhere, you move it there slowly, carefully, and gently.
I ~d my way towards the door...
She ~d back into the chair and nodded...
He ~d his foot off the accelerator...
Leaphorn ~d himself silently upward...
I ~d open the door.
VERB: V way prep/adv, V prep/adv, V n prep/adv, V pron-refl adv/prep, V n with adj
6.
If you are at ~, you are feeling confident and relaxed, and are able to talk to people without feeling nervous or anxious. If you put someone at their ~, you make them feel at ~.
It is essential to feel at ~ with your therapist...
Both men were unwelcoming, making little attempt to put Kathryn or her companions at their ~.
PHRASE: v-link PHR, PHR after v
7.
If you are ill at ~, you feel rather uncomfortable, anxious, or worried.
He appeared embarrassed and ill at ~ with the sustained applause that greeted him.
PHRASE: usu v-link PHR, PHR after v, oft PHR with n