to rest on
- phrasal verb
- /rɛst ɑn/
- Your entire future rests on this last project.
- rest on the assumption
- rest on an argument
- rest on the premise
All the fundamental physics rests on two pillars.
- All the fundamental physics rests on two pillars.
- Why would you do that if you could just rest on those laurels?
- It's like there's a lot more resting on you than you think.
- Most people don't see it rest on a hard power basis.
- We never rest on our laurels and say I did good.
- And I said this movie rests on your shoulders.
- Neither am I Don't rest on your laurels.
- I'd argue that in psychology, and indeed most magic at rests on psychology, particularly perception.
- Then they come very near to those whose bravery rests on being sanguine.
- And so there's a lot resting on the shoulders of Prince William at the moment.
- The authority of data, charts, the bottom line and bullet points rests on the appeal of processing speed.
Examples
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But actually, it turns out to all be resting on a hill of sand.
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Viable grand strategies need to rest on a wellspring of domestic support.
Academic text (2011) -
The models themselves tend to rest on a somewhat unstable foundation of items.
Academic text (2015) -
You see, the secret of success is to never rest on your laurels.
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A great responsibility rests on each of you.
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So the entire system rests on the stability of the banks, right?
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The success of education abroad rests on the allocation of adequate funding.
Academic text (2011) -
All the fundamental physics rests on two pillars.
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Our survival rests on all species treating each other... with compassion, kindness, and respect.
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The success of her presentation will rest on the clarity of her arguments.
Synonyms
To trust a person or thing to do what you need
Trust a person or thing to do what you expect
To rely on a person or thing for help
Need help or support from something to live
To depend on someone or something for what happens
Use something you already have as a base for new work
Base an idea or argument on evidence
Trust someone or something to do what you need
Use something as a base for further work
To trust a person or thing to give support
To depend on something as the main basis for an idea or argument
How Dependent
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'rest' (to be supported or placed) combined with the locative preposition 'on' yields the sense of placing or supporting something on a surface. This verb + preposition pattern is regular in English and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the parts will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Rest on comes from the simple image of one thing sitting on a base, like a house on its foundation or a book on a table. So, if an idea rests on facts, it 'depends on' those facts.