The Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

v. 1 restore, save, reclaim, rescue, redeem, re-establish, reinstate, re-educate, reorient, reform, US straighten out,

Colloq US rehab: They have had marked success at rehabilitating criminals. 2 renew, redecorate, renovate, refurbish, restore,

fix (up), repair, reconstruct, rebuild, change, transform: Sam has plans to rehabilitate vintage cars for a living.

rehash v. 1 rework, go over again, restate, redo, rearrange, reshuffle, reuse: Heverton has nothing new to offer - he just keeps on rehashing the same old material.

--n. 2 reworking, restatement, redoing, rearrangement, reshuffle, reshuffling, reuse, rewording: Her speech was a mere rehash of what she's said scores of times already.

rehearsal n. 1 practice, exercise, dry run, drill, run-through, read-through, dress rehearsal, Technical undress rehearsal: Is there a rehearsal of the school play scheduled for tonight? 2 narration, recounting, relation, recital, telling, description, enumeration, account, repetition, repeat: Do we have to listen to yet another rehearsal of your great-uncle's exploits in the war?

rehearse v. 1 practise, exercise, run through, read through, study, repeat: Sorry, Annie, but we are going to have to rehearse the scene till you get it right. 2 repeat, relate, recite, tell, describe, recount, review, go through or over, review, report, recapitulate, Colloq recap: I shall go mad if I hear him again rehearse the events leading up to the final acceptance of his novel.

reign n. 1 rule, sovereignty, ascendancy, power, hegemony, influence, command, suzerainty, administration, jurisdiction, leadership, government, direction, control, domination, mastery; kingdom, monarchy, empire: During her reign, the kingdom saw its

greatest prosperity.

--v. 2 rule, control, command, govern, lead, direct, dominate, supervise, manage, hold sway, wear the crown, wield the sceptre, occupy the throne, Colloq run the show, rule the roost, Slang call the shots: During the sixth Egyptian dynasty, Pepi II Nefektare reigned for 94 years, the longest in recorded history.

3 prevail, be or become prevalent, predominate, hold sway,

obtain, be or become rampant, be or become universal: An argument broke out, which developed into a fist fight, and soon pandemonium reigned.

reimburse v. repay, recompense, refund, pay back, compensate, remunerate, indemnify: Don't worry - we'll reimburse you for any money you spent.

reinforce v. strengthen, buttress, bolster, support, fortify, prop (up), shore up, augment, brace, stay, steel: The bookshelf needs to be reinforced with another bracket, or it'll fall down.

reinforcement

n. 1 buttress, support, prop, brace, stay, bolster: This iron reinforcement ought to be strong enough to secure the wall. 2 strengthening, buttressing, bolstering, shoring (up), augmentation, bracing: This shelf is wobbly and in need of reinforcement. 3 reinforcements. reserves, auxiliaries, men, soldiers, forces, personnel: We cannot hold out till reinforcements arrive.

reiterate v. repeat, restate, iterate, labour, harp on, dwell on, rehash, recapitulate, Colloq recap: I must reiterate my warning to you to be careful.

reject v. 1 decline, refuse, disallow, spurn, veto, turn down, give (something) the thumbs down, set aside, US turn thumbs down (on); deny, repudiate, renounce, rebuff, shun, brush aside, turn a deaf ear to, will not hear of: Jim has rejected my plan for a holiday in Torremolinos. She rejects any suggestion that she might be wrong. 2 refuse, repel, repulse, spurn, rebuff, say no to, turn down, decline, brush aside; jilt, drop, dismiss, throw

over, give (someone) the cold shoulder, show (someone) the door,

coordinate: Volta first enabled us to relate the forces of chemistry and electricity. 2 recount, narrate, tell, report, present, describe, recite, detail, set forth, communicate, divulge, impart, reveal, delineate, make known, give an account of, rehearse: It was not till years later that Olivia related

to me the strange events of that night. 3 apply to, coordinate with, respect, regard, bear upon or on, have a bearing on, have reference to, have to do with, pertain to, refer to, appertain

to, belong with or to: Does your comment really relate to the matter in hand? 4 Often, relate to. be in or en rapport with, understand, empathize, sympathize, communicate with, identify with, grasp, comprehend, be in tune with, deal with, handle, cope with, Colloq dig, tune in to, be hip to, be turned on to,

be or get into: I have been having trouble relating to my new psychiatrist. Your favourite music is reggae? - Man, I can relate to that.

related adj. 1 associate(d), affiliate(d), connected, coupled, linked, tied up, allied, correlated, coordinate(d), interconnected, interrelated, interdependent, mutual, reciprocal, common, joint, cognate: She and her husband work for related companies. 2 kin, kindred, consanguineous, cognate, agnate; akin: Just how are you two related? Are you cousins?

relation n. 1 relationship, connection, affiliation, association, bearing, link, tie, tie-in, reference, pertinence,

interconnection, interdependence, correspondence, kinship: The relation between time and money is rarely disputed these days. 2 kinship, relationship: Just what is your relation to this

lady? 3 relative, kinsman or kinswoman, blood relative, in-law, family member: Is she a relation of yours? 4 narration, narrative, telling, recounting, description, report, recital, recitation, delineation, portrayal, story, recapitulation: She amused them all with her relation of what had happened to her that night. 5 in relation to. concerning, about, regarding, respecting, pertaining to, with regard to, with respect to, referring to, with reference to, on or in the matter or subject

of, apropos, re, Archaic or Scots anent, Dialect anenst: I should like to talk to you in relation to the matter of company expenses. 6 relations. a sexual intercourse, coitus, sex, criminal conversation; carnal knowledge: It is well known that he had relations with his secretary. b dealings, intercourse, link(s), association(s), liaison, relationship, Colloq doings,

truck: We have no relations with that company.

relationship

n. See relation, 1, 2, above.

relative adj. 1 related, connected, associated, allied, affiliated, interconnected, interrelated, pertinent, relevant, germane, applicable; apropos: Your comments are not relative to the matter at hand. 2 Sometimes, relative to. comparative,

comparable, proportionate, proportional, commensurate; analogous to, contingent on, dependent on, reliant on, conditioned by,

subject to, attendant on, correspondent or corresponding to, provisional on, appurtenant to; subordinate to, ancillary to: Well, as they say, everything is relative. Relative humidity depends on the temperature of the air. The yield is relative to the effort.

--n. 3 See relation, 3, above.

relatively

adv. more or less, somewhat, comparatively, rather, to some degree or extent: Business has been relatively quiet lately.

relax v. 1 loosen, let go, release, let up (on), relieve, ease,

reduce, moderate, slacken, remit, Colloq ease up on, slacken up on: He relaxed his grip on the rope and fell to his death on

the rocks below. 2 diminish, decrease, lessen, reduce, abate, weaken, mitigate, modify, tone down, moderate, modulate, lighten (up on), check, temper, curb: We must not relax our vigilance.

I hope that they don't relax the regulations concerning smoking in the office. 3 ease up, slow down, loosen up, put one's feet

up, rest, unbend, Colloq take it easy, unwind: Why not come for a weekend and relax a bit? 4 calm down, cool down, quiet down, stay calm, cool and collected, Colloq take it easy, Slang cool

it: You ought to relax and not get so excited.

relaxation

n. 1 ease, repose, rest, leisure, recreation, amusement, entertainment, fun, pleasure, diversion, Colloq R and R ('rest and relaxation'): For relaxation we usually charter a boat and go sailing. 2 easing (up or off), relief, alleviation, abatement, diminution, lessening, mitigation, moderation, slackening, remission, weakening, letting up, Colloq let-up:

What do you think about the proposed relaxation of the laws against pornography?

unloose, untie, unchain, unfetter, unshackle, deliver, let out, disenthral, discharge, let off, emancipate, manumit, rescue, save: They kept up a strenuous campaign until all the political prisoners were released. 2 issue, publish, make available, put out, pass out, hand out, come out with, circulate, distribute, disseminate; launch, unveil, present: The government refuses to release information that is considered harmful to its interests. The band's new album will be released tomorrow.

--n. 3 freeing, releasing, liberating, loosing, unloosing, delivering, emancipating, manumitting, rescuing, saving, freedom, liberation, deliverance, discharge, emancipation, manumission, rescue, remission, salvation: The release of the prisoner is scheduled for noon. It would be a great release to

be rid of housework. 4 press or publicity release, announcement, publicity, notice, story, report: The press office sent out a release to the media about Randolph's appointment.

relegate v. 1 consign, banish, exile, transfer, dispatch or despatch: Owing to his disagreement with the Foreign Office, Kendall was relegated to some outpost in the Indian Ocean. 2 downgrade, demote: I fear that Corporal Jones has been relegated to private. 3 assign, commit, hand over, refer, transfer, pass on: She relegates most of her everyday correspondence to her secretary for reply.

relent v. relax, soften, yield, give, give way or ground, bend, comply, acquiesce, compromise, capitulate, come round, be merciful, show pity or compassion, melt, show mercy, succumb: They finally relented and allowed me to have visitors.

relentless

adj. 1 unyielding, inexorable, unstoppable, unrelenting, dogged, implacable, inflexible, unbending, unmoving, unmoved,

unrelieved, stiff, hard, stiff-necked, rigid, obstinate, adamant, obdurate, intransigent, determined, unswerving, undeviating, intractable, persevering, steely, tough,

intransigent, unsparing, uncompromising, pitiless, unforgiving, ruthless, merciless, cruel, unmerciful, remorseless: The novel is about the relentless horde of Mongols that swept across Europe in the 13th century. 2 non-stop, persistent, incessant, unrelenting, unremitting, unstoppable, perpetual, unfaltering, unfailing, unflagging, unrelieved, unabated, unrelieved, unbroken, continual, continuous, ceaseless, constant, unceasing, steady, habitual, regular: Won't you ever stop your relentless nagging?

relevance n. relevancy, appropriateness, aptness, pertinence, bearing, connection, affinity, tie-in, relation, significance,

suitability, suitableness, applicability, application, applicableness: What you just said has no relevance whatsoever to the issue under discussion.

relevant adj. pertinent, appropriate, apt, related, relative, significant, suited, applicable, fitting, proper, germane, akin, allied, associated, apposite, to the point: Alan's suggestion is not strictly relevant to our plans.

reliable adj. dependable, trustworthy, honest, trusty, trusted, principled, conscientious, punctilious, honourable, credible, believable, safe, sure, certain, secure, sound, responsible, predictable, stable, unfailing, infallible, reputable: Would a reliable employee like Susan abscond with the money?

reliance n. confidence, trust, faith, dependence: You may be placing too much reliance on the smoke alarm.

blistering heat. Contributions for the relief of famine in

Africa would be most welcome. 2 aid, help, support, assistance, succour; comfort: How many troops can we send for the relief of the besieged garrison? 3 elevation, projection, contrast, prominence; bas-relief or basso-rilievo ('low relief'), mezzo-rilievo ('medium relief'), alto-rilievo ('high relief'):

The Greek reliefs brought to England by Lord Elgin are on display at the British Museum. 4 substitute, surrogate, replacement, alternate, locum (tenens), stand-in; understudy, double: I wish that my relief would arrive so I could go home.

relieve v. 1 ease, lessen, reduce, diminish, abate, lift, raise, alleviate, mitigate, palliate, soften, soothe: Business will suffer if nothing is done to relieve the burden of high interest rates. The doctor gave me something to relieve the pain. 2 disburden, free, rid, liberate, disencumber, unburden, rescue,

save, release: Winning the lottery relieved me of any immediate worries of poverty. 3 help, aid, assist, support, succour,

rescue, save, deliver: Will the cavalry arrive in time to relieve the fort, which is under attack? 4 stand in (for), replace, substitute for, take over for or from, US spell, Colloq sub for: I thought you were coming to relieve me at noon.

religion n. creed, belief, faith; doctrine, dogma: People must be treated equally, regardless of their religion.

religious adj. 1 devout, churchgoing, pious, God-fearing, holy, spiritual-minded: You never struck me as a particularly religious person. 2 scrupulous, exact, precise, conscientious, rigorous, strict, fastidious, meticulous, faithful, punctilious, unerring, unswerving, undeviating: Edmund's work is characterized by religious devotion to detail.

relinquish

v. 1 yield, give up, cede, waive, leave, quit, abandon, drop, forsake, forswear, desert, abdicate, resign, renounce, let go, surrender, vacate, retire from: Richard was forced to relinquish the throne. 2 let go, give up, release, unloose, loose, free: He refused to relinquish his grasp on her arm.

relish n. 1 enjoyment, pleasure, delight, gusto, eagerness, avidity, anticipation, taste, appetite, zest, liking, appreciation, fondness, fancy, partiality, preference: The children attacked

the birthday cake with great relish.

--v. 2 enjoy, delight in, take pleasure in, fancy, be partial to, appreciate, savour, look forward to, anticipate: After all that dining out, I'd really relish a home-cooked meal. I don't relish having to tell her she is being made redundant.

reluctance

n. unwillingness, disinclination, aversion, dislike, disrelish, hesitancy: Cooper's reluctance to leave before the end of the play was understandable.

reluctant adj. unwilling, disinclined, averse, hesitant, loath, unenthusiastic, indisposed, opposed, antagonistic; cautious, chary, wary, leery, circumspect, careful: I remember how reluctant you were to try raw oysters, and then you couldn't get enough of them.

to come through when you need a friend. I am relying on the fact that interest rates are likely to stay at their present levels.

remain v. 1 stay (behind), be left, tarry, linger, wait, Colloq stay put: I remained to help with the washing-up. 2 be left, be there: How many days remain before your trip? 3 stay, continue, carry on, abide; endure, persist, last, persevere: She refuses to remain with him another minute. His last book will remain a monument to his scholarship.

--n. 4 remains. a leavings, remnants, crumbs, debris, detritus, remainder, balance, residue, leftovers, scraps, vestiges, traces, fragments, oddments, odds and ends: The remains of a half-eaten meal were on the table. b body,

cadaver, corpse; carcass: The remains of the impala were being picked over by vultures.

remainder n. 1 rest, balance, remains, residue: He spent the remainder of his life in penury. 2 excess, overage, surplus, residue, residuum, leftovers: I have used all I needed and don't know what to do with the remainder.

remaining adj. 1 left (over), extant, outstanding: I did as much as I could in the time remaining. 2 leftover, surviving, residual; unused, uneaten, unconsumed: The remaining books will be sold at auction.

remark n. 1 note, notice, observe, perceive, regard, look at, take notice or note of: His friends remarked his tired and overworked appearance and suggested that he should take a holiday. 2 comment (on or upon), say, observe, reflect, mention, declare, state, assert: Carrie remarked that she had seen Ted the night before.

remarkable

adj. 1 extraordinary, unusual, singular, exceptional, noteworthy, notable, uncommon, incredible, unbelievable, impressive, phenomenal, astonishing, astounding, surprising: With remarkable swiftness the falcon dropped on its prey. 2 striking, distinguished, signal, special, wonderful, marvellous, out of the ordinary, special, unique, significant, outstanding, rare, memorable, unforgettable, never-to-be-forgotten: This novel is truly a remarkable achievement. 3 strange, different, odd, peculiar, curious: Contortionists can do truly remarkable things with their bodies.

remedy n. 1 cure, treatment, therapy, antidote, counteractant, countermeasure, medication, medicament, medicine, prescription, drug, pharmaceutical, cure-all, panacea, nostrum, restorative, specific: What remedy did the doctor recommend? 2 cure, antidote, cure-all, panacea, nostrum, countermeasure, relief, redress, answer, solution: Knowledge is the only remedy for superstition.

--v. 3 cure, treat, heal, mend, restore, relieve, soothe, control, ease, mitigate, alleviate: The ointment will remedy the itching but not the infection causing it. 4 correct, rectify, reform, improve, ameliorate, redress, repair, put or set right, straighten out: How can I remedy a situation that has already gone too far?

remember v. 1 call to mind, bear in mind; recall, recollect: Can you remember her funny little laugh? Yes, I remember. 2 muse (on or about), reminisce over or about, think back on or about,