different between relax vs icebreaker

English

Etymology

From Middle English relaxen, from Old French relaxer, from Latin relax?re (“relax, loosen, open”), from re- (“back”) + lax?re (“loosen”), from laxus (“loose, free”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /???læks/
• Rhymes: -æks

Verb

relax (third-person singular simple present relaxes, present participle relaxing, simple past and past participle relaxed)

1. (transitive) To calm down.
2. (transitive) To make something loose.
3. (intransitive) To become loose.
   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     I relax in the living room.

4. (transitive) To make something less severe or tense.

5. (intransitive) To become less severe or tense.
6. (transitive) To make something (such as codes and regulations) more lenient.
   • 1713, Jonathan Swift, A Preface to Bishop Burnet's Introduction

     The statute of mortmain […] was at several times relaxed by the legislature.
7. (intransitive, of codes and regulations) To become more lenient.
8. (transitive) To relieve (something) from stress.

9. (transitive, dated) To relieve from constipation; to loosen; to open.

Antonyms

• stress, excite

Derived terms

• relaxable
• overrelax, underrelax

Related terms

• relaxation

Translations

Anagrams

• laxer, raxle

Italian

Noun

relax m (invariable)

1. relaxation (mental or physical)

Spanish

Etymology

Pseudo-anglicism, shortening of English relaxation or erroneous borrowing of English relax.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?rela?s/, [?re.la??s]

Noun

relax m (uncountable)

1. relaxation

Derived terms

• estar de relax

English

Alternative forms

• ice breaker, ice-breaker

Etymology

ice +? breaker, in the figurative sense from the expression to break the ice.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?a?s?b?e?k??/

Noun

icebreaker (plural icebreakers)

1. A ship designed to break through ice so that it, or other ships coming behind, can navigate on frozen seas.

   Coordinate term: slushbreaker
2. (figuratively) A game, activity, humorous anecdote, etc., designed to relax a group of people to help them get to know each other.
3. (theater) A lively song and dance routine at the start of a musical.

Translations

See also

• break the ice
• passagemaker

Further reading

• icebreaker on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “icebreaker”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.