RELAPSE Synonyms: 58 Similar and Opposite Words

relapse 1 of 2

noun

Definition of relapse

as in reversion

the act or an instance of returning to a usually worse state or condition She discussed some ways to help avoid a relapse after quitting smoking. After a long period of cancer remission, he suffered a relapse.

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Relevance

Dissimilar Words

relapse

2 of 2

verb

as in to revert

to return to a usually worse state or condition After a few good months of keeping their rooms clean, the kids relapsed into their old untidy habits.

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of relapse

Noun

Now, in a study published in JAMA Network Open, researchers have found that a single dose of psilocybin combined with about 10 psychotherapy sessions can reduce cocaine use and lower relapse risk. — Humberto Basilio, Scientific American, 10 Aug. 2026 Allison Janney won an Emmy for the Mom episode where her character has a drug relapse. — Joe Reid, Vulture, 8 Aug. 2026

Verb

The illness can last anywhere from days to over a month if untreated, and symptoms could relapse one or more times after a person feels better. — Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026 Seek medical care for prolonged or relapsing watery diarrhea, and ask your provider to specifically request cyclospora testing, as it is not reliably detected on routine stool exams. — Joseph Hernandez august 3, Kansas City Star, 3 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for relapse

Recent Examples of Synonyms for relapse

Noun

Referred to as reversions, these should also be removed promptly.

— Nadia Hassani, The Spruce, 12 Sep. 2026
That sense is epitomised by the reversion to goalkeepers who can, unlike some of the strugglers from 2022-23, actually make saves on a consistent basis.

— Michael Cox, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of reversion

Verb

Fazio predicted that over time, the public benefits charge will revert back to being a cost for customers, amounting to around 15% to 20% of most residential electricity bills.

— John Moritz, Hartford Courant, 18 Sep. 2026
Their research also finds that concentration has historically tended to mean-revert across most sectors, supporting the case for reducing exposure to the market’s largest holdings.

— Artem Milinchuk, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of revert

Noun

Mills attributes their original breakdown to a combination of miscommunication, competing priorities and different assessments of whether college athletes could organize effectively.

— Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 24 Sep. 2026
The Department of Pesticide Regulation in late 2025 unveiled searchable county and statewide data breakdowns for regulatory actions taken by agricultural commissioners from the start of 2020 through the end of June 2025.

— Robert J. Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of breakdown

Verb

Those protections are part of a CISA provision that lapsed once, and Congress must soon decide if the provision should be extended.

— Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 2 Sep. 2026
The last remaining arms control agreement between Moscow and Washington, New START, lapsed in February, and for the first time since 1972, nothing limits Russia’s and the United States’ expansion of their offensive or defensive nuclear forces.

— Jeffrey Lewis, Foreign Affairs, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of lapse

Noun

The 2009 recession, financial rescue packages, and the COVID-19 pandemic which started in 2020 were responsible for adding trillions to this debt.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026
Those suggestions include stress testing financial plans for potential recession, with 54%; building an emergency savings fund, also 54%; reevaluating retirement savings contribution rates, 34%; and accelerating debt paydown, 33%.

— Lorie Konish, CNBC, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of recession

Noun

Shelford addressed the deckhand’s absence during the episode as his crew grappled with a series of setbacks.

— Deirdre Durkan, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2026
But during the shutdown, Brightline ended the deal with Branson’s Virgin Group, saying that the company’s reputation had diminished as a result of financial setbacks.

— David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of setback

Noun

Nathan Fielder has taken on airline crashes, his fear of intimacy, and a man who drinks his grandson’s pee, but Elizabeth Holmes might be his most formidable opponent subject yet.

— Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2026
Idaho State Police is investigating a two-vehicle injury crash Tuesday on State Highway 55 that left four people hospitalized.

— Harllie Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of crash

Noun

The African Union estimated that conflict resulted in around 600,000 deaths from combat, famine and the collapse of healthcare.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Sep. 2026
Their battles for influence, image and desire, in a Spain on the brink of collapse, are observed and narrated with fierce irony by Francisco de Goya, an uneasy witness who turns palace intrigue into a surprisingly contemporary mirror.

— Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of collapse

Browse Nearby Words

relaid

relapse

relapsed

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Style

“Relapse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/relapse. Accessed 28 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of relapse

noun

verb

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