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   Spell

   /spel/

   

   noun

   • 1. a short period: "I want to get away from racing for a spell" Similar periodtimeintervalseasonstretchruncourseroundspanstreaksnapinformal:patchspot
   • ▪ a period spent in an activity: "a spell of greenhouse work" Similar stintturnstretchsessiontermshifttour of dutywatch
   • ▪ a period of a specified kind of weather: "an early cold spell in autumn"
   • ▪ a period of suffering from a specified kind of illness: "she plunges off a yacht and suffers a spell of amnesia"
   • ▪ a period of rest from work.

   verb

   • 1. allow (someone) to rest briefly by taking their place in some activity: "I got sleepy and needed her to spell me for a while at the wheel"
   • ▪ take a brief rest: "I'll spell for a bit"

   Word Origin late 16th century: variant of dialect spele ‘take the place of’, of unknown origin. The early sense of the noun was ‘shift of relief workers’.

   Scrabble Points: 7

   • S

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   • P

     3

   • E

     1

   • L

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   • L

     1

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