Meaning & use
rest easy
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Meanings
phraseidiom
To stop worrying and feel calm, usually because a problem is settled or in good hands.
Grammar: Often used as a reassurance with you: you can rest easy. Followed by knowing or that.
Patterns
- rest easy knowing that something
- rest easy about something
- you can rest easy
You can rest easy; the tickets are already booked.
She rested easy knowing her dog was with a good sitter.
After the results came back clear, the whole family could rest easy.
phrasefixed phrase
Used as a respectful wish that a dead person may be at peace, especially in tributes.
Grammar: Usually said or written to the dead, often as an imperative.
Patterns
- rest easy, someone
Fans wrote "rest easy" beneath the singer's last photo.
He whispered rest easy at the grave of his old friend.
Teammates held up the jersey and said rest easy, captain.
Word forms
| third person singular | rests easy |
|---|---|
| past tense | rested easy |
| past participle | rested easy |
| -ing form | resting easy |
Common combinations
- rest easy knowing
- Parents can rest easy knowing the school has strict safety checks.
- can rest easy
- After the audit, the manager could rest easy.
- rest easy tonight
- The mayor told residents to rest easy tonight.
- rest easy about
- I can't rest easy about the exam yet.
- sleep and rest easy
- Lock the doors and rest easy.
Synonyms and how they differ
- relax
- Relax is broader and can mean physical rest, while rest easy means being free from worry about something specific.
- stop worrying
- Stop worrying is blunt and plain, whereas rest easy sounds gentler and more reassuring.
- breathe easy
- Breathe easy stresses relief after a danger has passed, while rest easy often points to ongoing peace of mind.
- put your mind at rest
- Put your mind at rest usually describes what someone else does for you, while rest easy describes your own state.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: rest easy or rest in peace? rest easy or take it easy?
rest easy vs rest in peace
Rest in peace is the formal tomb inscription, while rest easy is shorter and more casual, though both address the dead.
rest easy vs take it easy
Take it easy means to relax or go slowly, not to stop worrying.
Practice
The doctor said the scan was clear, so Maria could finally ___.
Choose one answer.
Rest easy means stop worrying. Rest up means recover with sleep, which does not fit the news of a clear scan as neatly.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rest easy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.