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relapse

Pronunciation: /rɪˈlaps/

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Definition of relapse

verb

[no object]
  • (of a sick or injured person) deteriorate after a period of improvement: two of the patients in remission relapsed after 48 months
  • (relapse into) return to (a less active or a worse state):he relapsed into silence

noun

Pronunciation: /also ˈriːlaps/

  • a deterioration in someone’s state of health after a temporary improvement:he responded well to treatment, but then suffered a relapse

Derivatives

relapser

noun

Origin:

late Middle English: from Latin relaps- 'slipped back', from the verb relabi, from re- 'back' + labi 'to slip'. Early senses referred to a return to heresy or wrongdoing

relapse in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of relapse in the US English dictionary

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