ease

Etymology

From Middle English ese, eise, aise, from Anglo-Norman ese (“ease”), from Old French eise, aise (“elbow room; opportunity”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Apparently related to Provençal ais, Italian agio and asio, Sicilian aciu and Portuguese azo. Sometimes ascribed to Vulgar Latin *āsia or *āsium, possibly from Latin ānsa (“handle, haft”) or Frankish *ansiju (“handle, loophole, eyelet; cup-handle; arms akimbo, elbow room”), but more often derived from Vulgar Latin *adjace(m), from Latin adjacēns (“adjacent, neighbouring”), present participle of adjaceō (“lie next to, border on”), though the forms and senses are difficult to trace clearly. Alternatively, possibly from a non-Latin source such as Germanic or Celtic on the basis of the conflicting forms which appear in various Romance languages. Compare Old English īeþe (“easy”), Gothic 𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐌹 (azēti, “ease; pleasure”), *𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐍃 (*azēts, “easy”), Breton eaz, ez (“easy”), Irish adhais (“easy; leisure”). See also eath. The verb is from Middle English esen, ultimately of the same origin.

noun

1. Ability, the means to do something
   1. Skill, dexterity, facility.
      He played the ukelele with ease.
2. Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness
   1. Freedom from pain, hardship, and annoyance, sometimes (derogatory, archaic) idleness, sloth.
      She enjoyed the ease of living in a house where the servants did all the work.
   2. Freedom from worry and concern; peace; sometimes (derogatory, archaic) indifference.
      The pension set her mind at ease.
   3. Freedom from difficulty.
      He passed all the exams with ease.
   4. Freedom from effort, leisure, rest.
      We took our ease on the patio.
   5. Freedom from financial effort or worry; affluence.
      His inheritance catapulted him into a life of ease.
   6. Freedom from embarrassment or awkwardness; grace.
      She dealt with the faculty with combined authority and ease.
3. Relief, an end to discomfort
   1. Followed by of or from: release from or reduction of pain, hardship, or annoyance.
      Take one pill every 12 hours to provide ease from pain.
   2. (euphemistic, obsolete) Release from intestinal discomfort: defecation.
   3. Release from constraint, obligation, or a constrained position.
      At ease, soldier!
   4. (clothing) Additional space provided to allow greater movement.
      Add some ease to the waist measurement.
4. (obsolete) A convenience; a luxury.
5. (obsolete) A relief; an easement.

verb

1. (transitive) To free (something) from pain, worry, agitation, etc.
   He eased his conscience by confessing.
   Elyse Saugstad, a professional skier, wore a backpack equipped with an air bag, a relatively new and expensive part of the arsenal that backcountry users increasingly carry to ease their minds and increase survival odds in case of an avalanche. 2012, John Branch, “Snow Fall : The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek”, in New York Time
2. (transitive) To alleviate, assuage or lessen (pain).
   He loosened his shoe to ease the pain.
   His words of comfort eased his friend's pain and distress.
3. (transitive) To give respite to (someone).
   The provision of extra staff eased their workload.
   An extra rush-hour train has eased overcrowding of the former 5.39 p.m. to Salisbury; this now leaves at 5.43 and an additional electric service to Alton departs at 5.39 p.m. 1961 October, “The winter timetables of British Railways: Southern Region”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 593–594
4. (nautical, transitive) To loosen or slacken the tension on a line.
   We eased the boom vang, then lowered the sail.
5. (transitive) To reduce the difficulty of (something).
   We had to ease the entry requirements.
6. (transitive) To move (something) slowly and carefully.
   He eased the cork from the bottle.
   Ease down off boulders; a jump may jar or sprain. April 1915, Enos A. Mills, “Going to the Top”, in The Rocky Mountain Wonderland, Houghton Mifflin, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 18
7. (intransitive) To lessen in intensity.
   The pain eased overnight.
8. (intransitive) To proceed with little effort.
   The car eased onto the motorway.