From Middle English esy, eesy, partly from Middle English ese (“ease”) + -y, equivalent to ease + -y, and partly from Anglo-Norman eisé from Old French aisié (“eased, at ease, at leisure”), past participle of aisier (“to put at ease”), from aise (“empty space, elbow room, opportunity”), of uncertain origin. See ease. Merged with Middle English ethe, eathe (“easy”), from Old English īeþe, from Proto-Germanic *auþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwtus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- (“to enjoy, consume”). Compare also Old Saxon ōþi, Old High German ōdi, Old Norse auðr, auð-, Icelandic auð (adverb), auð-, all meaning "easy." More at ease, eath.
Now that I know it's taken care of, I can rest easy at night.
“[…] She takes the whole thing with desperate seriousness. But the others are all easy and jovial—thinking about the good fare that is soon to be eaten, about the hired fly, about anything.”1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XVI, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
2
Requiring little skill or effort.
It's often easy to wake up but hard to get up.
The teacher gave an easy test to her students.
4 more examples
Now the easiest sell in traveldom is made even easier.1963, American Society of Travel Agents, ASTA Travel News, volume 32, page 55:
I realized this all too well when as a seminarian I got stuck with the job of recruiting the washees for a Maundy Thursday service. It's much easier to be the one down on the floor with the basin[…]1995, Margaret Guenther, Toward Holy Ground, page 43:
As the world's drug habit shows, governments are failing in their quest to monitor every London window-box and Andean hillside for banned plants. But even that Sisyphean task looks easy next to the fight against synthetic drugs. No sooner has a drug been blacklisted than chemists adjust their recipe and start churning out a subtly different one.2013 August 10, “A new prescription”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848, archived from the original on 21 Sep 2020:
You could just use ordinary shop-bought kecap manis to marinade the meat, but making your own is easy, has a far more elegant fragrance and is, above all, such a great brag! Flavouring kecap manis is an intensely personal thing, so try this version now and next time cook the sauce down with crushed, split lemongrass and a shredded lime leaf.2015 October 27, Matt Preston, The Simple Secrets to Cooking Everything Better, Plum, →ISBN, page 192:
3
Causing ease; giving comfort, or freedom from care or labour.
Rich people live in easy circumstances, that is, the easy life.
an easy chair
4
Free from constraint, harshness, or formality; unconstrained; smooth.
easy manners; an easy style
the easy vigour of a line1711 May, [Alexander Pope], An Essay on Criticism, London: […] W[illiam] Lewis […]; and sold by W[illiam] Taylor […], T[homas] Osborn[e] […], and J[ohn] Graves […], →OCLC:
5
Derogatory, Informal, Usually, Of a woman or girl Consenting readily to sex.
She has a reputation for being easy; they say she slept with half the senior class.
6
Not making resistance or showing unwillingness; tractable; yielding; compliant.
He gain'd their easy hearts.1697, Virgil, “(please specify the book number)”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
He is[…] too tyrannical to be an easy monarch.1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC:
From Middle English esy, eesy, partly from Middle English ese (“ease”) + -y, equivalent to ease + -y, and partly from Anglo-Norman eisé from Old French aisié (“eased, at ease, at leisure”), past participle of aisier (“to put at ease”), from aise (“empty space, elbow room, opportunity”), of uncertain origin. See ease. Merged with Middle English ethe, eathe (“easy”), from Old English īeþe, from Proto-Germanic *auþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwtus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- (“to enjoy, consume”). Compare also Old Saxon ōþi, Old High German ōdi, Old Norse auðr, auð-, Icelandic auð (adverb), auð-, all meaning "easy." More at ease, eath.
1
In a relaxed or casual manner.
After his illness, John decided to take it easy.
Everything comes easy to her.
1 more example
We immediately threw out all the little things we had with us, ſuch as biſcuits, apples, &c. and after that one of our oars or wings; but ſtill deſcending, we caſt away the other wing, and then the governail ; having likewiſe had the precaution, for fear of accidents, while the Balloon was filling, partly to looſen and make it go eaſy, I now ſucceeded in attempting to reach without the Car, and unſcrewing the moulinet, with all its apparatus; I likewiſe caſt that into the ſea.1786, John Jeffries, Jean-Pierre Blanchard, A narrative of the two aerial Voyages of Dr. J. with Mons. Blanchard: with meteorological observations and remarks., page 45:
2
In a manner without strictness or harshness; gently; softly.
From Middle English esy, eesy, partly from Middle English ese (“ease”) + -y, equivalent to ease + -y, and partly from Anglo-Norman eisé from Old French aisié (“eased, at ease, at leisure”), past participle of aisier (“to put at ease”), from aise (“empty space, elbow room, opportunity”), of uncertain origin. See ease. Merged with Middle English ethe, eathe (“easy”), from Old English īeþe, from Proto-Germanic *auþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwtus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- (“to enjoy, consume”). Compare also Old Saxon ōþi, Old High German ōdi, Old Norse auðr, auð-, Icelandic auð (adverb), auð-, all meaning "easy." More at ease, eath.
Virtually all of the "easies" are the first watermark and the "toughs" are the second.1995 September 19, Greg Ioannou, “watermarks and 11d plum”, in rec.collecting.stamps (Usenet), archived from the original on 20 Apr 2026:
Run past the nasties, kill the easies.2001 February 24, Nib / Shu, “nib reaches a milestone!!!”, in microsoft.public.games.zone.asherons_call (Usenet), archived from the original on 20 Apr 2026:
1 more example
Make the easies a bit tougher by shaping slightly away from the A position.2003 September 29, Austin K. Williams, “8 straight hours......”, in alt.sport.pool (Usenet), archived from the original on 20 Apr 2026:
easy
verb
Etymology
From Middle English esy, eesy, partly from Middle English ese (“ease”) + -y, equivalent to ease + -y, and partly from Anglo-Norman eisé from Old French aisié (“eased, at ease, at leisure”), past participle of aisier (“to put at ease”), from aise (“empty space, elbow room, opportunity”), of uncertain origin. See ease. Merged with Middle English ethe, eathe (“easy”), from Old English īeþe, from Proto-Germanic *auþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwtus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- (“to enjoy, consume”). Compare also Old Saxon ōþi, Old High German ōdi, Old Norse auðr, auð-, Icelandic auð (adverb), auð-, all meaning "easy." More at ease, eath.
1
Hobbies, Lifestyle, Rowing, Sports Synonym of easy-oar.
easy
intj
Etymology
From Middle English esy, eesy, partly from Middle English ese (“ease”) + -y, equivalent to ease + -y, and partly from Anglo-Norman eisé from Old French aisié (“eased, at ease, at leisure”), past participle of aisier (“to put at ease”), from aise (“empty space, elbow room, opportunity”), of uncertain origin. See ease. Merged with Middle English ethe, eathe (“easy”), from Old English īeþe, from Proto-Germanic *auþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwtus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- (“to enjoy, consume”). Compare also Old Saxon ōþi, Old High German ōdi, Old Norse auðr, auð-, Icelandic auð (adverb), auð-, all meaning "easy." More at ease, eath.