backslide

[bak-slahyd]

verb (used without object)

backslid, backslid, backslidden, backsliding. 

1. to relapse into bad habits, sinful behavior, or undesirable activities.

noun

1. an act or instance of backsliding.

   a backslide from his early training.

backslide

/ ˈbækˌslaɪd /

verb

1. (intr) to lapse into bad habits or vices from a state of virtue, religious faith, etc

Other Word Forms

• backslider noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of backslide¹

First recorded in 1575–85; back ² + slide

Example Sentences

Among the zaniness there’s an emotional arc, a dance of personal growth and backsliding, and depending on what the scene requires, he might be the dumbest guy in the room or the wisest.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

This backsliding flies in the face of how much progress has been made to stop people from dying needlessly.

Read more on Salon

Environmentalists called that backsliding; Newsom called it realism, given the impending refinery closures in the state that threaten to drive up gas prices.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Beijing’s turn to clean energy is helping keep the Paris accord intact, despite developing nations’ frustration with Western backsliding on climate goals.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"The backsliding from a brief moment of progress is statistically devastating," she told the audience.

Read more on BBC