regress
Americanverb (used without object)
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regresses,
present (3rd person singular)
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regressed,
past participle, past
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regressing
present participle
noun
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the act of going back; return.
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the right to go back.
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backward movement or course; retrogression.
verb
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(intr) to return or revert, as to a former place, condition, or mode of behaviour
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(tr) statistics to measure the extent to which (a dependent variable) is associated with one or more independent variables
noun
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the act of regressing
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movement in a backward direction; retrogression
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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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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regresssimple
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regressessimple
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have regressedperfect
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has regressedperfect
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am regressingprogressive
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are regressingprogressive
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is regressingprogressive
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have been regressingperfect progressive
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has been regressingperfect progressive
Past
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regressedsimple
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had regressedperfect
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was regressingprogressive
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were regressingprogressive
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had been regressingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing regress
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Vocabulary from The Articles of Confederation
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Its the perfect time" for South Korea to leverage its strategic advantage and make investments as "the AI boom might die down" and demand could regress, he told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
The Dodgers are still trying to figure out ways to make sure he doesn’t regress once the catcher comes back from a neck injury.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
Instead, the cells appeared to regress into a more juvenile form.
From Science Daily ● May 27, 2026
Mississippi’s fourth-graders will again regress toward the mean.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
“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
The confusion, the worry, the frustration of being the father of a child who grows and learns and then, suddenly, regresses.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 23, 2021
As the movie’s biggest name, Vaughn regresses to his second-rate deadpan comedy roles of old, forcing his way through a comedically constipated performance.
From New York Times ● Aug. 27, 2020
A renowned gynecologist falls in love with a golf pro, as his wife regresses into childishness and his daughter prepares for her wedding.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2020
But Atlanta, and its know-nothing Liberty Media ownership, seems unaware that analytics predict its five-man rotation will not have anybody with an ERA under 4.00 as everybody regresses toward previous career performance.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 17, 2019
Without radioactivity to maintain it, the disease seems to be arrested immediately, and if the tissue damage has not gone too far, the tumor regresses and eventually disappears.
From The Star Lord by Boyd Ellanby
Once he’s managed to hurl himself past the surf to rest atop an underwater cliff, the darkness below is as scary as if we’d regressed into primordial prey.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
On the contrary, this return to “A Different World” simultaneously reminds us of how far TV has regressed since the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2026
But at Dilley, she regressed behaviorally, wetting herself after years without accidents and begging to breastfeed again despite being 6 years old.
From Slate ● Feb. 3, 2026
Following this treatment, the remaining tumour fully regressed.
From BBC ● Jan. 6, 2026
You've probably regressed completely by now, living in that substandard old house with only your mother for company.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
You didn’t need nine hours of talk radio to absorb it: These Patriots were overrated, these Patriots were regressing, these Patriots were staring at a season they could be worse than the freaking Jets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Greyson was meeting all his milestones and speaking normally until age 2, when he started regressing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2025
Moving back with her parents had felt "weird" as she had moved into her childhood room, and meant she was in danger of regressing to teenage ways.
From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2025
But Kidman isn’t debasing herself or regressing just for the sick sight of it all.
From Salon ● Dec. 23, 2024
“Barb” is what I was called as a child, and still am by my siblings, and I sense that at some level I’m regressing.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
