respite

noun

1. (countable, uncountable)A brief interval of rest or relief.

   “I crave but four day's respite.”

   “Some pause and respite only I require.”

   “It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers.”

   “Mr. Cameron had a respite Thursday from the negative chatter swirling around him when he appeared outside 10 Downing Street to denounce the murder a day before of a British soldier on a London street.”

2. (countable, uncountable)A reprieve, especially from a sentence of death.

   “Thenne spake sir gawayn and sayd my lord Arthur I wold counceylle yow not to be ouer hasty but that ye wold putte it in respyte this Iugement of my lady the quene for many causes. "Then spake Sir Gawaine, and said: My lord Arthur, I would counsel you not to be over-hasty, but that ye would put it in respite, this judgment of my lady the queen, for many causes."”

   “The PACC Act [Post-Appeal Applications in Capital Cases Act] also amends the CPC [Criminal Procedure Code] to provide that a capital sentence may be carried out unless:[…]The President has ordered a respite.”

3. (countable, uncountable)The delay of appearance at court granted to a jury beyond the proper term.
4. (countable, uncountable)A short period of spoken dialogue in an otherwise sung-through musical.

verb

1. (transitive)To delay or postpone (an event).
2. (transitive)To allow (a person) extra time to fulfil some obligation.