relax
/ɹɪˈlæks/verb
relax is spelled R-E-L-A-X: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 19 times per million words in written English, the 4,365th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, relax means “To make something loose” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in relax?
| Letters | 5: R-E-L-A-X |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 19 times per million words; the 4,365th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is relax?
Relax appears 19 times per million words in written English, the 4,365th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce relax?
- /ɹɪˈlæks/
Relax has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-relax.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with relax?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as relax.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: laxer.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of relax
- relaxes present, singular, he/she/it
- relaxing participle, present
- relaxed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does relax mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To make something loose.
to relax a rope or cord
- 2
datedTo relieve from constipation; to loosen; to open.
An aperient relaxes the bowels.
- 3
To become loose.
- 4
To relieve (someone or someone's mind) of stress; to enable to rest; to calm down.
Amusement relaxes the mind.
- 5
To rest and become relieved of stress.
I like to relax by listening to music.
- 6
To make something less severe or tense.
to relax discipline
- 7
To become less severe or tense.
Tensions between the two countries have relaxed somewhat in recent weeks.
- 8
To make something (such as codes and regulations) more lenient.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Relax in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | relâcher , se détendre, se relaxer |
| German | lockern, entspannen , sich entspannen, relaxen |
| Portuguese | soltar, afrouxar , relaxar |
| Spanish | relajar, aflojar , relajarse, estar de relax |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does relax come from?
From Middle English relaxen, from Old French relaxer, from Latin relaxāre (“relax, loosen, open”), from re- (“back”) + laxāre (“loosen”), from laxus (“loose, free”). By surface analysis, re- + lax (“open, free, loose”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).