reprieve
English
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reprieve
- /ɹɪˈpɹiːv/
Where it comes from
First use appears c. 1513 in the writings of Robert Fabyan. In the sense of “to take back to prison”, from Middle English repryen (“to remand, detain”) (1494), possibly from Middle French repris, in the form of reprendre (“take back”); a cognate to reprise. The sense has become generalized, but does retain connotations of punishment and execution. The noun's first use appears c. 1592.
verb reprieves · reprieving · reprieved · repryve · reprive
- To cancel or postpone the punishment of someone, especially an execution.
- To bring relief to someone. Company […] may reprieve a man from his melancholy, yet it cannot secure him from his conscience.
- To take back to prison (in lieu of execution).
- To abandon or postpone plans to close, withdraw or abolish (something). At the time of writing the halts have been reprieved due to doubts as to the legality of the withdrawal of services. It is feared that this reprieve may not outlast the summer timetable which, on the section in question, provides only a skeleton of the former service.
noun reprieves · repryve · reprive
- The cancellation or postponement of a punishment. The prisoner was saved from execution; the governor had requested a reprieve.
- A document authorizing such an action.
- Relief from pain etc., especially temporary. I have photographed destroyed homes, hospitals, funerals, humanitarian aid, empty markets and the daily lives of people returning to their neighborhoods during moment of reprieve.
- A cancellation or postponement of a proposed event undesired by many. At the time of writing the halts have been reprieved due to doubts as to the legality of the withdrawal of services. It is feared that this reprieve may not outlast the summer timetable which, on the section in question, provides only a skeleton of the former service.
Translations
Every language
verb to cancel or postpone the punishment
| Español | exceptuar, excepcionar |
|---|---|
| Français | accorder un sursis |
verb to bring relief
| Français | apporter du répit |
|---|
noun cancellation of a punishment
| Español | indulto |
|---|---|
| Français | grâce, sursis |
| Deutsch | Begnadigung, Strafaufschub, Galgenfrist, Gnadenfrist, Vollzugsaufschub, Frist |
| Русский | отсро́чка otsróčka |
noun relief from pain
| Français | répit |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Erlösung, Erleichterung, Atempause |
| Русский | облегче́ние oblexčénije, переды́шка peredýška |
Talk about this word "reprieve." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/reprieve. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. reprieve. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/reprieve "reprieve." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/reprieve.Cite this
@misc{reprieve_2026,
title = {reprieve},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/reprieve},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
