Definition of relief noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

relief

noun

rɪˈliːf

rɪˈliːf

removal of anxiety/pain

1 [uncountable, singular] the feeling of happiness that you have when something unpleasant stops or does not happena sense of reliefWe all breathed a sigh of relief when he left.She sighed with relief.Much to my relief the car was not damaged.News of their safety came as a great relief.It was a relief to be able to talk to someone about it.What a relief!

2 [uncountable] relief (from/of something) the act of removing or reducing pain, anxiety, etcmodern methods of pain reliefthe relief of sufferingMassage can bring some relief from tension.Volunteers provide regular help to give relief to carers.

help

3 [uncountable] food, money, medicine, etc. that is given to help people in places where there has been a war or natural disaster

Synonym

aidfamine reliefa relief agency/organization/worker

4 [uncountable] (especially North American English) financial help given by the government to people who need it

on tax

5 [uncountable] = tax reliefrelief on mortgage interest payments

something different

6 [uncountable, singular] something that is interesting or enjoyable that replaces something boring, difficult or unpleasant for a short period of timea few moments of light relief in an otherwise dull performanceThere was little comic relief in his speech.relief from something The calm of the countryside came as a welcome relief from the hustle and bustle of city life.

workers

7 [countable + singular or plural verb] (often used as an adjective) a person or group of people that replaces another when they have finished working for the day or when they are sickThe next crew relief comes on duty at 9 o'clock.relief drivers

from enemy

8 [singular] relief of… the act of freeing a town, etc. from an enemy army that has surrounded itthe relief of Mafeking

in art

9 [uncountable, countable] a way of decorating wood, stone, etc. by cutting designs into the surface of it so that some parts stick out more than others; a design that is made in this wayThe column was decorated in high relief (= with designs that stick out a lot) with scenes from Greek mythology.The bronze doors are covered with sculpted reliefs. see also bas-relief

making something noticeable

10 [uncountable] the effect of colours, light, etc. that makes an object more noticeable than others around itThe snow-capped mountain stood out in sharp relief against the blue sky.11 [uncountable] the quality of a particular situation, problem, etc. that makes it more noticeable than beforeTheir differences have been thrown into sharp relief by the present crisis.