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relapse

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Relapse is to return to a prior condition, or to have an illness or addiction reoccur.

(verb)

When an alcoholic has been sober for two months and he slips and has a drink, this is an example of a situation where he relapses.
When your cancer was cured but it came back a year later, this is an example of a situation where you relapse.

The definition of a relapse is a backsliding or a situation where a person who was getting better returns to a worse state.

(noun)

When cancer you thought was cured comes back, the return of the cancer is an example of a relapse.

See relapse in Webster's New World College Dictionary

intransitive verb relapsed, relapsing

to slip or fall back into a former condition, esp. after improvement or seeming improvement; specif.,

to fall back into illness
to fall back into bad habits, wrongdoing, etc.; backslide

Origin: < L relapsus, pp. of relabi, to slip or slide back: see re- & lapse

noun

the act or an instance of relapsing
the recurrence of a disease after apparent improvement

Related Forms:

relapser noun

See relapse in American Heritage Dictionary 4

intransitive verb re·lapsed, re·laps·ing, re·laps·es

To fall or slide back into a former state.
To regress after partial recovery from illness.
To slip back into bad ways; backslide.

noun (rēˈlăps, rĭ-lăpsˈ)

A falling back into a former state, especially after apparent improvement.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English relapsen, to forswear

Origin: , from Latin relābī, relāps-, to fall back gradually

Origin: : re-, re-

Origin: + lābī, to slide

Related Forms:

re·lapsˈer noun

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