REPRIE'VE, verb transitive [I know not the origin of this word.] 1. To respit after sentence of death; to suspend or delay the execution of for a time; as, to reprieve a criminal for thirty days. He reprieves the sinner from time to time. 2. To grant a respit to; to relieve for a time for any suffering. Company, though it may reprieve a man from his melancholy, yet cannot secure a man from his conscience. REPRIE'VE, noun 1. The temporary suspension of the execution of sentence of death on a criminal. 2. Respit; interval of ease or relief. All that I ask is but a short reprieve till I forgot to love, and learn to grieve.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI