calm,pause,quietness,slumber,
calmness,peace,quietude,stay,
cessation,peacefulness,recreation,stillness,
ease,quiescence,repose,stop,
intermission,quiet,sleep,tranquillity.

Ease denotes freedom from cause of disturbance, whether[314] external or internal. Quiet denotes freedom from agitation, or especially from annoying sounds. Rest is a cessation of activity especially of wearying or painful activity. Recreation is some pleasing activity of certain organs or faculties that affords rest to other parts of our nature that have become weary. Repose is a laying down, primarily of the body, and figuratively a similar freedom from toil or strain of mind. Repose is more complete than rest; a pause is a momentary cessation of activity; a black-smith finds a temporary rest while the iron is heating, but he does not yield to repose; in a pause of battle a soldier rests on his arms; after the battle the victor reposes on his laurels. Sleep is the perfection of repose, the most complete rest; slumber is a light and ordinarily pleasant form of sleep. In the figurative sense, rest of mind, soul, conscience, is not mere cessation of activity, but a pleasing, tranquil relief from all painful and wearying activity; repose is even more deep, tranquil, and complete.

Antonyms:

agitation,disturbance,movement,stir,tumult,
commotion,excitement,restlessness,strain,unrest,
disquiet,motion,rush,toil,work.

RESTIVE.

Synonyms:

balky,impatient,rebellious,restless,
fidgety,intractable,recalcitrant,skittish,
fractious,mulish,refractory,stubborn,
fretful,mutinous,resentful,unruly,
frisky,obstinate,restiff,vicious.

Balky, mulish, obstinate, and stubborn are synonyms of restive only in an infrequent if not obsolete use; the supposed sense of "tending to rest," "standing stubbornly still," is scarcely supported by any examples, and those cited to support that meaning often fail to do so. The disposition to offer active resistance to control by any means whatever is what is commonly indicated by restive in the best English speech and literature. Dryden speaks of "the pampered colt" as "restiff to the rein;" but the rein is not used to propel a horse forward, but to hold him in, and it is against this that he is "restiff." A horse may be made restless by flies or by martial music, but with no refractoriness; the restive animal impatiently resists or struggles to break from control, as by bolting, flinging his rider, or otherwise. With this the metaphorical use of the word agrees, which is always in the sense of such terms as impatient, intractable, rebellious, and the like; a people restive[315] under despotism are not disposed to "rest" under it, but to resist it and fling it off.

Antonyms: