relapse
Other forms: relapsed; relapsing; relapses
A relapse is a decline, especially of someone's health. If your grandmother survived cancer only to have it return two years later, you could say she suffered a relapse.
Relapse implies that someone has recovered from an illness and slid back into a worse state, like when you are getting over a cold but then you suddenly feel bad all over again. Unwanted behavior can also be described this way; if you find yourself biting your nails again, it's a nail-biting relapse. The Latin word relabi is the root of relapse, slip back.
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deteriorate in health
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go back to bad behaviorsynonyms: fall back, lapse, recidivate, regress, retrogress
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a failure to maintain a higher statetypes:recidivismhabitual relapse into crimetype of:failurean act that fails
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Vocabulary lists containing relapse
Don't let your vocabulary skills yo-yo! National Yo-Yo Day is June 6th, so after you practice your "walk-the-dog," learn these terms related to the metaphor "yo-yo" — having a tendency to make progress, only to regress shortly after. Check out the full article: Yay for Yo-Yo Day!
When tragedy strikes, Esperanza's family has to leave their ranch in Mexico and move to a farmworkers' camp during the Great Depression.