ease in

1. verb To enter something very gently and gradually. I eased in to the bath, letting my skin acclimate to the hot water.

2. verb To move or maneuver someone or something into something else very gently and gradually. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "ease" and "in." The substance is highly reactive with this solution, so we'll have to ease it in extremely carefully. I prepared the bath and eased in the patient.

3. verb To become gently introduced or accustomed to something new, such as a job or situation. I was really stressed about beginning a job I was so unfamiliar with, but my boss assured me I would have plenty of time to ease in.

4. verb To introduce or accustom someone very gently and gradually to a new situation, condition, or circumstance. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "ease" and "in." Your grandfather has lived in the same home for over 60 years, so we have to be sure we ease him in.

5. verb In animation, to decrease the space between the frames of an animated object to indicate its deceleration. Also referred to as "slowing in." Remember to ease in when you animate something coming to a stop. The more frames you include, the smoother the stop will appear.

6. noun An instance of such an animation technique. Often hyphenated. We squash the character slightly during the ease-in to indicate the force of the sudden stop.