Meaning & use
relapsing
Last updated
Falling back into a former state, especially returning to illness, a bad habit, or addiction after a period of improvement.
See it in a sentence
The doctor warned that skipping medication could risk relapsing into the same illness.
After eight months sober, he found himself relapsing under the stress of the divorce.
A note on using this word
Most common in medical and addiction-recovery contexts, where a "relapse" specifically means the return of a condition that had been getting better.
Words with a similar meaning
backslidingregressing
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
recoveringimproving
Make it your own
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