Relaxar

Relaxar is a Portuguese verb that means to relax, loosen, or ease tension. It can refer to relaxing the body or the mind and is used in physical, mental, and social contexts. The term is common in everyday speech, sports, medicine, and lifestyle advice, and it can describe actions that reduce stress, soften stiffness, or encourage a calmer state.

Etymology comes from Latin relaxare, formed from re- (back, again) and laxus (loose). In Portuguese, relaxar has developed standard meanings related to reducing tension and restoring ease, with the reflexive form relaxar-se also used to describe one’s own relaxation.

Conjugation (selected forms):

- Present indicative: eu relaxo, tu relaxas, você/ele relaxa, nós relaxamos, vocês relaxam.

- Imperfect: eu relaxava, tu relaxavas, você relaxava, nós relaxávamos, vocês relaxavam.

- Future: eu relaxarei, você relaxará, nós relaxaremos, vocês relaxarão.

- Gerund: relaxando.

- Past participle: relaxado.

Note: Portuguese uses the reflexive form relaxar-se for actions the subject performs on itself (eu me relaxo).

Usage:

Relaxar can describe physical relaxation (relaxar os ombros, relaxar a musculatura), mental or emotional relief (preciso de tempo para relaxar), and becoming less rigid or tense in social or work contexts. It is common in instructions, health guidance, sports training, and self-care discussions. The related noun is relaxamento, referring to the state of being relaxed.

Cross-linguistic note:

In Spanish, the cognate relajar exists with similar meaning but different orthography. Related terms include relaxamento or relaxamento (Portuguese for the noun form), and descontrair-se as a broader synonym for informal relaxation.