✅ A recess is a temporary break from activity or work (The judge took a short recess).

✅ A respite is a break from something, especially something difficult or stressful (They worked for three days without respite).

✅ Recess is generally used to refer to a scheduled break, and is most commonly used in the context of school, politics, or the justice system (There would be a morning recess between classes).

✅ Respite is generally used to refer to a break, scheduled or not, from something difficult, painful, or trying. Respite suggests a sense of relief or temporary freedom (Sleep offered some respite).

Try writing about a time you got some much-needed respite with the help of Grammar Coach.

✅ Frosty describes something very cold or freezing, and in a metaphorical sense means unfriendly and lacking warmth and hospitality (We got a frosty reception from our host).

✅ Wintry describes something that evokes or resembles winter, such as cold (or nippy) and stormy weather, and in a metaphorical sense suggests lacking in warmth and cheer (She turned and looked at us with a wintry scowl).

✅ While both frosty and wintry describe things that are literally or metaphorically cold, frosty specifically suggests the freezing cold: the kind of weather that might create frost. Wintry suggests more general winter-like weather (The air was frosty; We had a week of wintry storms in September).

Check out these other wintry synonyms!

✅ Short describes something that is not tall, or not long (a short stack of pancakes).

✅ Diminutive describes something that is small or tiny (a diminutive frame).

✅ Diminutive suggests being small in all dimensions, especially when smaller than average. Describing something or someone as diminutive can suggest delicacy (The ukulele player's fingers looked diminutive next to the drummer's).

✅ Short only suggests being not tall, or not long: it doesn’t suggest that the person or thing described is out of the ordinary, or small in other dimensions (The chair's legs were a bit short for the table).

Not all these synonyms are particularly diminutive!