regress

American  

[ri-gres, ree-gres] / rɪˈgrɛs, ˈri grɛs /

verb (used without object)

1. to move backward; go back.

   Synonyms:

   ebb, lapse, backslide, retreat, revert

2. to revert to an earlier or less advanced state or form.

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noun

1. the act of going back; return.

2. the right to go back.

3. backward movement or course; retrogression.

regress British  

verb

1. (intr) to return or revert, as to a former place, condition, or mode of behaviour

2. (tr) statistics to measure the extent to which (a dependent variable) is associated with one or more independent variables

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noun

1. the act of regressing

2. movement in a backward direction; retrogression

3. logic a supposed explanation each stage of which requires to be similarly explained, as saying that knowledge requires a justification in terms of propositions themselves known to be true

Other Word Forms

• regressor
  noun

Etymology

Origin of regress

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English regresse (noun), from Latin regressus “a return,” noun use of past participle of regredī “to go back, return,” from re- re- + -gredī, combining form of gradī “to step, walk, go”; cf. gradient

Explanation

To regress is to return to a former state or condition, and not usually in a good way. It often means "relapse" or "get worse." First used in the late 14th century as a noun meaning "act of going back," regress originates from the Latin regress, meaning "a return." Many feel that the regress to anti-social behavior among teenagers is caused by violent video games, TV shows, and movies. A 30 year old forced to move back home may regress to old, childlike habits. It can also happen to someone's health, like when the condition of someone in recovery takes a turn for the worse.

Example Sentences

Mississippi’s fourth-graders will again regress toward the mean.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 8, 2026

Yet if these growth rates regress to the mean, as they have in the past, value stocks are quite likely to outperform growth stocks over the next several years.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 30, 2026

Responding imperfectly in a moment of great stress doesn’t mean that this is a story designed to show how women fail each other, or how women are pitted against each other, or to regress feminism.

From Salon • Oct. 17, 2025

"I am doing everything I can as his parent to protect his wellbeing, and I cannot agree to a placement that I believe would put him or others at risk, or where he would regress."

From BBC • Sep. 23, 2025

“We must leave. Now. I should warn you that my mother may return momentarily. If I see her again. I'll regress horribly. We must dash.”

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole

Related Words

• degenerate
• deteriorate
• ebb
• fall back
• fall off
• recede
• revert