lapse

American  

[laps] / læps /

noun

1. an accidental or temporary decline or deviation from an expected or accepted condition or state; a temporary falling or slipping from a previous standard.

   a lapse of justice.

2. a slip or error, often of a trivial sort; failure.

   a lapse of memory.

3. an interval or passage of time; elapsed period.

   a lapse of ten minutes before the program resumed.

4. a moral fall, as from rectitude or virtue.

5. a fall or decline to a lower grade, condition, or degree; descent; regression.

   a lapse into savagery.

6. the act of falling, slipping, sliding, etc., slowly or by degrees.

7. a falling into disuse.

8. Insurance. discontinuance of coverage resulting from nonpayment of a premium; termination of a policy.

9. Law. the termination of a right or privilege through neglect to exercise it or through failure of some contingency.

10. Meteorology. lapse rate.

11. Archaic. a gentle, downward flow, as of water.

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verb (used without object)

lapsed, lapsing

1. to fall or deviate from a previous standard; fail to maintain a normative level.

   Toward the end of the book the author lapsed into bad prose.

2. to come to an end; stop.

   We let our subscription to that magazine lapse.

3. to fall, slip, or sink; subside.

   to lapse into silence.

4. to fall into disuse.

   The custom lapsed after a period of time.

5. to deviate or abandon principles, beliefs, etc..

   to lapse into heresy.

6. to fall spiritually, as an apostate.

   to lapse from grace.

7. to pass away, as time; elapse.

8. Law. to become void, as a legacy to someone who dies before the testator.

9. to cease being in force; terminate.

   Your insurance policy will lapse after 30 days.

lapse British  

/ læps /

noun

1. a drop in standard of an isolated or temporary nature

   a lapse of justice

2. a break in occurrence, usage, etc

   a lapse of five weeks between letters

3. a gradual decline or a drop to a lower degree, condition, or state

   a lapse from high office

4. a moral fall

5. law the termination of some right, interest, or privilege, as by neglecting to exercise it or through failure of some contingency

6. insurance the termination of coverage following a failure to pay the premiums

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verb

1. to drop in standard or fail to maintain a norm

2. to decline gradually or fall in status, condition, etc

3. to be discontinued, esp through negligence or other failure

4. (usually foll by into) to drift or slide (into a condition)

   to lapse into sleep

5. (often foll by from) to turn away (from beliefs or norms)

6. law (of a devise or bequest) to become void, as on the beneficiary's predeceasing the testator

7. (of time) to slip away

Other Word Forms

• lapsable
  adjective
• lapsed
  adjective
• lapser
  noun
• unlapsing
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of lapse

1520–30; < Latin lāpsus an error, slipping, failing, equivalent to lāb ( ī ) to slide, slip, fall, make a mistake + -sus, for -tus suffix of v. action

Explanation

A lapse is a temporary slip, failure or break in continuity. If you’re normally polite, a lapse in manners could make you forget to say “please” and “thank you.” First used to imply a “slip of the memory,” the noun lapse evolved in the sixteenth century from the Latin lapsus, meaning “a slipping and falling, falling into error.” The connotation of “a moral slip” developed later, and the verb form came into existence even later than that. Behaving badly one day when you're usually on your best behavior is a lapse; behaving badly again after a short stint being well-mannered means you're lapsing back into nasty old habits.

Example Sentences

When the photos are ready, several hours later, their takers can decide if they want to post them for their Lapse friends or archive them for private viewing.

From New York Times • Oct. 31, 2023

As it braced for a potential shutdown, DHS issued a 46-page document titled “Procedures Relating to a Lapse in Appropriations.”

From Washington Post • Feb. 27, 2015

They put out an album of new material, “Momentary Lapse of Reason” and toured to support it.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 5, 2014

Yosemite Wildfire Time Lapse A massive conflagration has engulfed at least 192,000 acres of forest in Yosemite National Park over a period of less than two weeks.

From Newsweek • Aug. 30, 2013

Lapse and Conversion of Theophilus, by Hroswitha, 45.

From Woman in Science With an Introductory Chapter on Woman's Long Struggle for Things of the Mind by Zahm, John Augustine

Related Words

• blunder
• breach
• crime
• error
• failing
• failure
• fault
• indiscretion
• miscue
• negligence
• offense
• omission
• oversight
• sin
• transgression
• violation