letup

1 of 2

noun

let·​up ˈlet-ˌəp 

: a lessening of effort, activity, or intensity

let up

2 of 2

verb

let up; letting up; lets up

intransitive verb

1

a

: to diminish or slow down : slacken

b

: cease, stop

2

: to become less severe

—used with on

Synonyms

Noun

• braking
• deceleration
• downshift
• retardation
• slowdown

Verb

• break off
• break up
• cease
• close
• conclude
• dead-end
• determine
• die
• discontinue
• elapse
• end
• expire
• finish
• go
• halt
• lapse
• leave off
• pass
• quit
• stop
• terminate
• wind up
• wink (out)

Examples of letup in a Sentence

Noun

the downpour continued for hours without letup

Verb

the rain let up just as we reached the house

the windmill slowed down as the wind let up

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Monarchs, who are ranked No. 1 in the state, had already secured a spot in the finals, but there was no letup in their sweep of the Oilers, 25-15, 25-16, 25-16. —Lou Ponsi, Orange County Register, 2 Nov. 2024

As the months passed with little letup in the bombardment, the Gaza death toll grew exponentially. —Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2024

Verb

This shows no signs of letting up, considering Meta’s significant capex investments in AI compute, and with its next version of Llama currently in training. —Patrick Moorhead, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024

Recent studies suggest the amount of plastics entering oceans isn’t letting up and may be increasing at a rate of 4% per year. —Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1836, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1787, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

letup

1 of 2 noun

let·​up ˈlet-ˌəp 

: a lessening of effort or force

let up

2 of 2 verb

1

: to slow down : slacken

2

: to come to a stop : cease

the rain let up

3

: to ease off : be less severe

—used with on