relapse
noun
- the return of a sign, symptom, or disease after a remission.
verb
- fall or slip back into a previous state
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ɹɪˈlæps/ / /ˈɹiːˌlæps/
noun
Etymology: From Latin relapsus, past participle of relabi (“to slide back, fall back”), from re- (“back”) + labi (“to slip, slide, fall”).
- The act or situation of relapsing.
“a drug relapse”
“Alas! from what high hope to what relapse / Unlooked for are we fallen!”
- An occasion when a person becomes ill again after a period of improvement
- One who has relapsed, or fallen back into error; a backslider.
verb
Etymology: From Latin relapsus, past participle of relabi (“to slide back, fall back”), from re- (“back”) + labi (“to slip, slide, fall”).
- To fall back again; to slide or turn back into a former state or practice.
“He has improved recently but keeps relapsing into states of utter confusion.”
“to relapse into a stupor, into vice, or into barbarism”
- To recur; to worsen, be aggravated (after a period of improvement).
- To return to a vice, especially self-harm or alcoholism, failing to maintain abstinence.
“relapsed after 5 months of being clean”
- To slip or slide back physically; to turn back.
“You slip your hold and change your side, Relapsing from a necessary guide.”