1. To delay the impending punishment or prison sentence of a condemned criminal: An impending punishment of death was reprieved to life in a penitentiary for the convicted criminal.
2. To relieve temporarily from an evil: At last the wind came and blew all the mosquitoes away and reprieved Tom and Susan from their buzzing and biting while camping near the lake during the summer.
3. Any respite or temporary relief: For Jane, the first time at the rock concert proved to be much too loud for her and finally the intermission relieved her at least for the time.
4. Etymology: to delay the execution or punishment of person. In 1571, reprive, "take back to prison, remand"; alteration (perhaps influenced by Middle English repreven, "contradict, refute, disapprove, blame"; a variant of reproven) from Middle English repryen, "to remand, to detain"; probably borrowed from Middle French repris, past participle of reprendre, "to take back".