/ rest; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
REMAINING PART / PEOPLE / THINGS
1.
[ sing. ] the ~ (of sth) the remaining part of sth :
I'm not doing this job for the rest of my life.
How would you like to spend the rest of the day?
Take what you want and throw the rest away.
2.
[ pl. ] the ~ (of sth) the remaining people or things; the others :
Don't blame Alex. He's human, like the rest of us.
The first question was difficult, but the rest were pretty easy.
PERIOD OF RELAXING
3.
[ C , U ] rest (from sth) a period of relaxing, sleeping or doing nothing after a period of activity :
I had a good night's rest.
We stopped for a well-earned rest.
to have / take a rest from all your hard work
Try to get some rest —you have a busy day tomorrow.
There are no matches tomorrow, which is a rest day , but the tournament resumes on Monday.
➡ note at break
SUPPORT
4.
[ C ] (often in compounds) an object that is used to support or hold sth :
an armrest (= for example on a seat or chair)
—picture at violin
IN MUSIC
5.
[ C , U ] a period of silence between notes; a sign that shows a rest between notes
—picture at music
•
IDIOMS
- and (all) the rest (of it)
- and the rest
- at rest
- come to rest
- for the rest
- give it a rest
- give sth a rest
- lay sb to rest
- lay / put sth to rest
- the rest is history
—more at mind noun , wicked noun
■ verb
RELAX
1.
to relax, sleep or do nothing after a period of activity or illness; to not use a part of your body for some time :
[ v ]
The doctor told me to rest.
I can rest easy (= stop worrying) knowing that she's safely home.
( figurative )
He won't rest (= will never be satisfied) until he finds her.
[ vn ]
Rest your eyes every half an hour.
—see also rested
SUPPORT
2.
[+ adv. / prep. ] to support sth by putting it on or against sth; to be supported in this way :
[ v , vn ]
His chin rested on his hands.
He rested his chin in his hands.
[ vn ]
Rest your head on my shoulder.
[ v ]
Their bikes were resting against the wall.
BE LEFT
3.
if you let a matter rest , you stop discussing it or dealing with it :
The matter cannot rest there—I intend to sue.
BE BURIED
4.
[ v + adv. / prep. ] to be buried. People say 'rest' to avoid saying 'be buried' :
She rests beside her husband in the local cemetery.
May he rest in peace .
—see also RIP
•
IDIOMS
- rest assured (that ... )
- rest your case
—more at easy adjective , god , laurel
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- rest on / upon sb/sth
- rest on sth
- rest with sb (to do sth)
••
WORD ORIGIN
noun senses 3 to 5 and verb Old English ræst , rest (noun), ræstan , restan (verb), of Germanic origin, from a root meaning league or mile (referring to a distance after which one rests).
noun senses 1 to 2 late Middle English : from Old French reste (noun), rester (verb), from Latin restare remain, from re- back + stare to stand.