1. That gives ease, comfort or relief; comfortable, soothing.
1375. Barbour, Bruce, V. 70. Myne auenture heir tak will I, Quhethir it be eisfull or angry.
c. 1425. Wyntoun, Cron., VI. xx. 46. Wyth oþire thyng Ðat esful ware to þare lykyng.
1580. Sidney, Arcadia, III. 377. Wishing easeful rest to Philoclea.
1577. Holinshed, Chron., I. 84/1. How pleasant and easefull the good lucke of those princes in gouerning the common wealth.
1607. C. Lever, in Farr’s S. P., 168. To make his burthen Easeful as hee may.
1625. trans. Gonsalvio’s Sp. Inquis., 123. A bed of flags which serued them both to couch on, more painfull a great deale then easefull.
1641. Milton, Ch. Govt., Wks. 1738, I. 67. It is neither easeful, profitable, nor praiseworthy in this Life to do evil.
1820. Keats, Ode Nightingale, 52. For many a time I have been half in love with easeful Death.
1886. T. Hardy, in Macm. Mag., 70. That easeful sense of accomplishment which follows work done that has been a hard struggle in the doing.
2. Unoccupied, at rest; addicted to ease or indolence, slothful, careless.
1611. Cotgr., Aiser. To be lazie, easefull.
a. 1618. Raleigh, Seat of Govt. (1651), 66. Giving the best of their grain to the easefull and idle.
1628. Wither, Brit. Rememb., III. 18/74 b. How few consider, to what fearfull ends, The faire smooth way, of easefull Pleasure tends?
1686. J. Crook, Ep. Yng. People prof. Truth, 4. Rest no longer in an easeful mind, above the Cross, but sink down in deep Humility to the oppressed Seed of God in you.
1855. Singleton, Virgil, I. 88. Winter is easeful for the husbandman.
Hence Easefully adv., in an easeful manner; comfortably; idly. Easefulness, the condition of being easeful.
1611. Cotgr., Estre en la paille iusques au ventre, to be fully accommodated, easefully lodged.
a. 1639. W. Whateley, Prototypes, I. xix. (1640), 235. The diligent man takes as much content in his moderate labour, as the sluggard in somnolency and easefullnesse.
1883. H. Baptist Crofts, in Brit. Q. Rev., July, 9/1. The exceeding sense of comfort and easefulness.
1886. T. Hardy, Mayor of Casterbridge, I. xx. 250. Standing with her hands on her hips, easefully looking at the preparations on her behalf.
