When people think about repose, they often think about taking a break from all the hustle and bustle of daily life. For example, someone might say "I'm going to take a long weekend at the beach to find some repose" which means they're looking forward to relaxing and not doing much of anything for a while. Repose can also be used in more formal situations like architecture or art, where it refers to the way something is posed or arranged - think about a statue with its arm resting gently against its body, that's an example of repose.
How common is "repose"?
Word repose is considered rare in modern English. It has a balanced usage among all categories: speech, fiction, newspapers and academic texts.
Definitions
verb
To lay (someone, or part of their body) down to rest.
To rest (oneself), especially by going to sleep.
Followed by from or (obsolete) of: to cause (oneself) to take a rest from some activity; also, to allow (oneself) to recover from some activity.
To give (someone) rest; to refresh (someone) by giving rest.
To cause (oneself) to have faith in or rely on someone or something.
To give (someone) accommodation for the night.
To lean or recline, sit down, or lie down to rest; to rest.
Followed by on or upon: of a thing: to lie or be physically positioned on something, especially horizontally; to rest on or be supported by something.
Example: a trap reposing on sand
Followed by on or upon: of light, a look, etc.: to fall or rest (and often remain for a while) on something; to alight, to dwell.
Followed by on or upon: to be based on; to depend or rely on.
To cease activity to rest or recover; also, to have a period free from activity or disturbance.