reliever

noun

re·​liev·​er ri-ˈlē-vər How to pronounce reliever (audio)
Synonyms of relievernext
: one that relieves
especially : relief pitcher

Examples of reliever in a Sentence

pain relievers like aspirin and ibuprofen Exercise is a good stress reliever.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Smith added a two-run double against reliever Trevor Richards later in the inning, stretching Houston’s lead to 6-2. — Lamond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2026 Teoscar Hernández, who had been slumping, hit a two-run home run, and consecutive run-scoring wild pitches from Tigers reliever Tanner Rainey certainly helped. — Katie Woo, New York Times, 31 Aug. 2026 Schreiber is now the sixth Yankees reliever with more than 50 appearances this season. — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 31 Aug. 2026 Angels shortstop Zach Neto capped a 12-pitch at-bat in the eighth with a solo homer off Phillies reliever Jonathan Bowlan, tying the score 1-1 and ending a string of 30 consecutive innings without an extra-base hit for the Angels. — Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for reliever

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of reliever was in the 15th century

Phrases Containing reliever

Rhymes for reliever

See All Rhymes for reliever

Browse Nearby Words

relieve oneself
reliever
relieving arch
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Reliever.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reliever. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on reliever

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for reliever

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All