From Middle English rest, reste, from Old English ræst, from Proto-West Germanic *rastu, from Proto-Germanic *rastō, of uncertain origin; possibly derived from Proto-Indo-European *h₁reh₁- (“to rest”) or *Hre(h₁)s- (“to flow, rush”). Cognate with West Frisian rêst (“rest”), Dutch rust (“rest”), German Rast (“rest”), Swedish rast (“rest”), Norwegian rest (“rest”), Icelandic röst (“rest”), Old Irish árus (“dwelling”), German Ruhe (“calm”), Albanian resht (“to stop, pause”), Welsh araf (“quiet, calm, gentle”), Lithuanian rovà (“calm”), Ancient Greek ἐρωή (erōḗ, “rest, respite”), Avestan 𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌𐬨𐬈 (aⁱrime, “calm, peaceful”), Sanskrit रमते (rámate, “he stays still, calms down”), Gothic 𐍂𐌹𐌼𐌹𐍃 (rimis, “tranquility”). Related to roo.
Of a person or animal Relief from work or activity by sleeping; sleep.
I need to get a good rest tonight; I was up late last night.
The sun sets, and the workers go to their rest.
2
Any relief from exertion; a state of quiet and relaxation.
We took a rest at the top of the hill to get our breath back.
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Peace; freedom from worry, anxiety, annoyances; tranquility.
It was nice to have a rest from the phone ringing when I unplugged it for a while.
And the land had rest fourscore years.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Judges 3:30:
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Of an object or concept A state of inactivity; a state of little or no motion; a state of completion.
The boulder came to rest just behind the house after rolling down the mountain.
The ocean was finally at rest.
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Now that we're all in agreement, we can put that issue to rest.
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Euphemistic A final position after death. Also, death itself: "Not alone, not alone would I go to my rest in the heart of the love..." -- George William Russell ("Love")
She was laid to rest in the village cemetery.
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Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music A pause of a specified length in a piece of music.
Remember there's a rest at the end of the fourth bar.
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Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music A written symbol indicating such a pause in a musical score such as in sheet music.
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Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Physics Absence of motion.
The body's centre of gravity may affect its state of rest.
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Ball games, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Snooker, Sports A stick with a U-, V- or X-shaped head used to support the tip of a cue when the cue ball is otherwise out of reach.
Higgins can't quite reach the white with his cue, so he'll be using the rest.
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Any object designed to be used to support something else.
She put the phone receiver back in its rest.
He placed his hands on the arm rests of the chair.
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A projection from the right side of the cuirass of armour, serving to support the lance.
their visors closed, their lances in the rest1700, [John] Dryden, “The Flower and the Leaf: Or, The Lady in the Arbour. A Vision.”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
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A place where one may rest, either temporarily, as in an inn, or permanently, as, in an abode.
c. 1851, Catholicus (pen name of John Henry Newman, letter in The Times halfway houses and travellers' rests
in dust our final rest, and native home1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
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Ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the Lord your God giveth you.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Deuteronomy xii:9:
The striking of a balance at regular intervals in a running account. Often, specifically, the intervals after which compound interest is added to capital.
a new account was opened under the heading "Irondale Mine" and so continued witli semiannual rest1874, New York Court of Appeals, Records and Briefs:
Etymology From Middle English resten, from Old English restan, from Proto-West Germanic *rastijan (“to rest”), from Proto-Indo-European *ros-, *res-, *erH- (“rest”). Cognate with Dutch rusten (“to rest”), Middle Low German resten (“to rest”), German rasten (“to rest”), Danish raste (“to rest”), Swedish rasta (“to rest”).
To cease from action, motion, work, or performance of any kind; stop; desist; be without motion.
My day's work is over; now I will rest.
I shall not rest until I have uncovered the truth.
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Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Exodus 23:12:
After the sugar beets are strained, pour in a large amount of honey and let it rest for thirty minutes. This will form the base for our delicious honey tender.1876 July 8, Christopher E. Benck, Recipes for traditional English foods:
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To come to a pause or an end; end.
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To be free from that which harasses or disturbs; be quiet or still; be undisturbed.
There rest, if any rest can harbour there.1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
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To put into a state of rest.
We need to rest the horses before we ride any further.
And thereby at a pryory they rested them all nyght.1485, Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte d'Arthur, Book X:
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With the north London derby to come at the weekend, Spurs boss Harry Redknapp opted to rest many of his key players, although he brought back Aaron Lennon after a month out through injury.2011 September 29, Jon Smith, “Tottenham 3-1 Shamrock Rovers”, in BBC Sport:
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To stay, remain, be situated, or belong to.
The blame seems to rest with your father.
Copyright in the typographical arrangement rests with the Crown.
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To rely or depend on.
The decision rests on getting a bank loan.
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To be based on; to rely on something for proof or explanation
On him I rested, after long debate, / And not without considering, fixed fate.1700, John Dryden, Sigismonda and Guiscardo:
Economics is a messy discipline: too fluid to be a science, too rigorous to be an art. Perhaps it is fitting that economists’ most-used metric, gross domestic product (GDP), is a tangle too.[…]But as a foundation for analysis it is highly subjective: it rests on difficult decisions about what counts as a territory, what counts as output and how to value it. Indeed, economists are still tweaking it.2013 August 3, “Boundary problems”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:
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To lean, lie, or lay.
A column rests on its pedestal.
I rested my head in my hands.
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She rested against my shoulder.
I rested against the wall for a minute.
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LawUS To complete one's active advocacy in a trial or other proceeding, and thus to wait for the outcome (however, one is still generally available to answer questions, etc.)
The defense rests, your Honor.
I rest my case.
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To sleep; slumber.
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To lie dormant.
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To sleep the final sleep; sleep in death; die; be dead.
I sing to him that rests below, And, since the grasses round me wave, I take the grasses of the grave, And make them pipes whereon to blow.1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XXI”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 35:
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To be satisfied; to acquiesce.
to rest in Heaven's determination1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC, Act II, scene i, page 19:
Etymology From Middle English reste, from Old French reste, from Old French rester (“to remain”), from Latin restō (“to stay back, stay behind”), from re- + stō (“to stand”). Replaced native Middle English lave (“rest, remainder”) (from Old English lāf (“remnant, remainder”)).
1
That which remains.
She ate some of the food, but was not hungry enough to eat it all, so she put the rest in the refrigerator to finish later.
2
Those not included in a proposition or description; the remainder; others.
Plato and the rest of the philosophers1676, Bishop Stillingfleet, A Defence of the Discourse Concerning the Idolatry Practised in the Church of Rome:
Arm'd like the rest, the Trojan prince appears.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:
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The rest of us were engaged in various occupations: Mr. Trevor relating experiences of steamboat days on the Ohio to Mrs. Cooke; Miss Trevor buried in a serial in the Century; and Farrar and I taking an inventory of the fishing-tackle, when we were startled by a loud and profane ejaculation.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter XI, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
Shepard: The rest of the galaxy isn't just going to bow down just because we tell them to. We'll need the fleets to bring them in line.2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Citadel:
It also showed that 26 of the top 30 AI patent requests came from businesses. Universities or public research organizations made up the rest.2019 February 3, “UN Study: China, US, Japan Lead World AI Development”, in Voice of America, archived from the original on 07 Feb 2019:
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Business, FinanceUK A surplus held as a reserved fund by a bank to equalize its dividends, etc.; in the Bank of England, the balance of assets above liabilities.