'relaxer' originates from the verb 'relax', which comes from Latin 'relaxare', where 're-' meant 'again' and 'laxare' meant 'loosen'.

'relaxare' transformed into the Old French word 'relasser', and eventually became the modern English word 'relax'.

Initially, it meant 'to loosen or make less tight', but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'to make less tense or stressed'.