ease

1 noun (U)

1 with ease if you do something with ease, it is very easy for you to do it: The car travelled smoothly up the hillside, taking the bends with ease. | It was the ease with which the burglars got into the house that worried her. | with consummate ease (=easily and gracefully)

2 at ease feeling relaxed in a situation in which most people might feel a little nervous: feel/look at ease: Nurses do all they can to make patients feel at ease. | put/set sb at their ease (=try to make someone feel relaxed) | ill at ease (=not relaxed): You always look ill at ease in a suit.

3 the ability to feel or behave in a natural or relaxed way: He had a natural ease which made him very popular.

4 for ease of application/use etc formal if something is done for ease of use, application etc, it is done to make that process easier: For ease of application there is a special nozzle attached to the tube.

5 a life of ease a comfortable life, without problems or worries: She had a life of ease, having married her boss.

6 stand at ease used to tell soldiers to stand in a relaxed way with their feet apart

2 verb

1 MAKE EASIER (T) to make something, especially a process, happen more easily: a new drug designed to ease childbirth for women everywhere

2 MOVE STH (transitive always + adv/prep) to move something slowly and carefully into another place: ease sth in/onto etc: Ease the patient slowly onto the bed. | She eased the binoculars out of the box.

3 GET BETTER (I, T) if something unpleasant eases or you ease it, it gradually gets better: When the storm eases a little, we'll be able to go out. | ease the pain/pressure/stress/tension: The cream should help ease the pain. | an out-of-town shopping project to ease congestion in the city

4 MAKE BETTER (T) to reduce the amount or the bad effect of something: a plan designed to ease housing shortages

5 ease your grip to hold something less tightly

6 ease your mind to make you feel less worried or nervous about something: It would ease my mind to know you had arrived safely.

ease out phrasal verb (I) if a vehicle eases out, it slowly moves forward into the traffic: Take your time, ease out slowly and ignore the cars waiting behind you. ease sb out phrasal verb (T) to deliberately try to make someone leave a job, a position of authority etc without officially saying anything ease off also ease up phrasal verb (I)

1 if something, especially something that annoys you, eases off or eases up, it gets less or better: The noise didn't ease up for some time. | Why don't you wait until the traffic eases off a little?

2 ease off on sb to stop being unpleasant to someone, especially because they do not deserve to be treated like this: Ease off on Roger will you, he's not that bad.

ease up phrasal verb (I)

1 to do something more slowly than before, especially because you have been going too fast, working too hard etc: Dan should ease up or he'll have a nervous breakdown.

2 (+ on) to ease off