Riddance

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɹɪd(ə)n(t)s/

Definitions

1. The process of eliminating an unwanted entity or situation is often associated with a sense of liberation and relief from burdensome influences or individuals
2. Achieving the removal of something deemed unpleasant can lead to a liberating experience, characterized by the absence of past troubles
3. The act or process of removing an unwanted thing, bringing a feeling of freedom from annoyance or trouble

Etymology: Riddance looks like a simple case of "rid" plus the suffix "-ance," but its history runs through Old English. The Old English noun "hryding" meant "a clearing" or "cleared land," and it survived into Middle English as "riddyng," meaning "clearing away" or "removal." Those forms were plural in the earliest records as "riddeings" and "ryddyngs," which sounds more like "clearings" or "clearances" than the modern sense. The word then reshaped itself to match "rid" and the familiar "-ance" ending, so that "riddance" came to mean the act of getting rid of something. Over time the sense narrowed from physical clearing to the condition of being free of something unwanted, which is how it is used today.

Synonyms: relief, deliverance, removal

Antonyms: burden, obligation, encumbrance