backslide

American  

[bak-slahyd] / ˈbækˌslaɪd /

verb (used without object)

backslid, backslid, backslidden, backsliding

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

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noun

1. an act or instance of backsliding.

   a backslide from his early training.

backslide British  

/ ˈbækˌslaɪd /

verb

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

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Other Word Forms

• backslider noun

Etymology

Origin of backslide

First recorded in 1575–85; back ² + slide

Example Sentences

Bass, in turn, warned the county’s actions could cause the city to backslide in its fight against homelessness.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 7, 2026

How did public health backslide so hard that it undid decades of progress—and is there any hope we can get back on track?

From Slate • Jul. 11, 2025

Every time something encouraging happens — executing the game plan to near-perfection at Vancouver, or tossing the kitchen sink and cabinets at the Sharks — they immediately backslide.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 27, 2023

Every year teachers and parents observe how summer vacations lead some children’s academic progress to backslide.

From Scientific American • Jun. 29, 2023

Men are wise with their schools and their teachers, Men are just with their creeds and their priests; Yet, in spite of their pedants and preachers, They backslide in footprints of beasts!

From Poems by Adam Lindsay Gordon by Clarke, Marcus Andrew Hislop