relapse
Americanverb (used without object)
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relapses,
present (3rd person singular)
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relapsed,
past participle, past
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relapsing
present participle
noun
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relapses
plural
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an act or instance of relapsing.
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a return of a disease or illness after partial recovery from it.
verb
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to lapse back into a former state or condition, esp one involving bad habits
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to become ill again after apparent recovery
noun
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the act or an instance of relapsing
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the return of ill health after an apparent or partial recovery
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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relapsesimple
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relapsessimple
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have relapsedperfect
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has relapsedperfect
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am relapsingprogressive
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are relapsingprogressive
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is relapsingprogressive
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have been relapsingperfect progressive
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has been relapsingperfect progressive
Past
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relapsedsimple
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had relapsedperfect
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was relapsingprogressive
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were relapsingprogressive
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had been relapsingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of relapse
First recorded in 1400–50; (for the verb) late Middle English, from Latin relāpsus “slid back,” past participle of relābī “to slide back, revert,” from re- re- + lābī “to fall, slide, make a mistake”; noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
A relapse is a decline, especially of someone's health. If your grandmother survived cancer only to have it return two years later, you could say she suffered a relapse. Relapse implies that someone has recovered from an illness and slid back into a worse state, like when you are getting over a cold but then you suddenly feel bad all over again. Unwanted behavior can also be described this way; if you find yourself biting your nails again, it's a nail-biting relapse. The Latin word relabi is the root of relapse, slip back.
Vocabulary lists containing relapse
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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:
Jordan, who has lived with an eating disorder since he was 12, said the photoshoot was the culmination of a dream he had held onto since a relapse in his teens.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
After a major relapse, and at Bartlett’s urging, she set up an online fundraiser to ease the financial strain of medical treatment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
They found that people showing stronger intestinal cell death signaling were also more likely to experience a relapse.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
Novartis said its drug reduced the annualized relapse rate and inflammatory brain lesions relative to the rival medicine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Then, for fear that its brief relapse into prose might have hardened the tyrant’s heart, it launched out breathlessly into Genevieve, tor the third time.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
The European Commission approved Cenrifki for secondary progressive multiple sclerosis without relapses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
"The children's hospital in Bristol has an ongoing clinical trial specifically for Burkitt's lymphoma relapses, so the timing is good," said Lloyd.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
If a patient relapses or breaks a rule in a rehab facility, the knee-jerk impulse should not be to discharge them from the program.
From Slate ● Dec. 19, 2025
Borg admits to several relapses during the 1990s when he also made an abbreviated tennis comeback.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2025
There were a few moments of minor relapses, like when I told her I had never belonged to the Latin Club, but on the whole she took things better than I thought she would.
From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel
Maya, 13, from Hythe in Kent, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma at three years old, but relapsed in 2023 having been in remission for five years.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
In a phase one clinical trial sponsored by RS Oncology, LLC, patients with relapsed mesothelioma received an experimental drug that controlled disease progression in 67% of participants.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
Yemen relapsed into war in July after years of relative calm punctured by sporadic violence and deepening poverty.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
Food and Drug Administration is reviewing Arcellx’s application seeking approval of anito-cel as a fourth-line treatment for patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, with a decision expected by the end of the year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
Showed improvement as a result of medication, relapsed after second miscarriage.
From "We Were Here" by Matt De La Peña
Novartis said it plans to seek regulatory authorization in relapsing multiple sclerosis globally for the drug, which is already approved in the U.S. and the European Union as a skin treatment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
In 2025, Italy became the first country to pass a national law recognising obesity as a chronic, progressive and relapsing disease.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
This allowed them to identify traces of several pathogens, including Yersinia pestis, the bacterium responsible for plague, and Borrelia recurrentis, which causes louse borne relapsing fever.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 8, 2026
Almost a decade later, the Times looks to be relapsing into bad form.
From Salon ● Apr. 6, 2026
She remained abed ten years, gradually growing better, but never completely recovering, relapsing periodically into her paralytic state.
From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright
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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.
