as in breakdowns
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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as in reverts
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.
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Dissimilar Words
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Recent Examples of relapses
Michelle Maves, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
His main goal is to provide support and encouragement, especially during relapses.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Alaba is already 33 and, for almost two years now, injuries or relapses have prevented him playing regularly, so his recovery has been viewed with pessimism within the club.
—Mario Cortegana, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2025
Compared with the men in the study, women were 8 percent less likely to receive disease-modifying drugs to manage symptoms and 20 percent less likely to get newer medications that are highly effective at reducing multiple sclerosis relapses, according to findings published in the journal Neurology.
—Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 4 Aug. 2025
Noun
Even with the great treatments that are available, progression of the disease may still continue and can’t be totally stopped, even without relapses.
—Michelle Maves, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
His main goal is to provide support and encouragement, especially during relapses.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Alaba is already 33 and, for almost two years now, injuries or relapses have prevented him playing regularly, so his recovery has been viewed with pessimism within the club.
—Mario Cortegana, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2025
Compared with the men in the study, women were 8 percent less likely to receive disease-modifying drugs to manage symptoms and 20 percent less likely to get newer medications that are highly effective at reducing multiple sclerosis relapses, according to findings published in the journal Neurology.
—Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 4 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for relapses
Noun
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The operations managers have to monitor dozens of dashboards while responding to technology breakdowns, reallocating resources, and making rapid-fire decisions.—
Abhishek Bhardwaj,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Oct. 2025
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This has been seen when pro leagues and players’ associations litigate against each other during work stoppages caused by breakdowns in labor relations.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The deduction and the phase-out levels will increase by 1% a year until 2029, when the cap reverts back to the original $10,000.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The Blue Jays have also had to adjust their starting rotation on the fly as some harsh setbacks sprung up toward the end of the regular season.—
Peter Chawaga,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
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Early on, each test had generally improved upon previous demonstrations until SpaceX hit some setbacks at the beginning of 2025 with a series of three failed tests ending in explosions.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Enzo Fernández’s influence in midfield has grown as Chelsea seeks to control matches with possession and tempo, though their defensive lapses remain a concern against quick counterattacks.—
Ben Verbrugge,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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Congress is taking this shutdown pretty easy compared to other recent funding lapses.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But there are a wide range of both broken skills and weapons (go try out Sturm), and some promised updates or nerf reversions don’t seem to have happened at all.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Previous recessions including the 2008 Great Recession were triggered by similar risky lending practices.—
Andrew Stanton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
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That’s worse than during the past three recessions – during the Covid pandemic, the Great Recession or the dot-com bust.—
Matt Egan,
CNN Money,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But most deer versus vehicle crashes are the result of breeding season, when bucks are active and increasing their movement.—
Craig Shoup,
Nashville Tennessean,
27 Oct. 2025
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Three people were killed and one injured in three vehicle crashes on Arkansas roads on Wednesday and Friday, according to preliminary police reports.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
26 Oct. 2025
Noun
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And while the collapses of Tricolor and First Brands were widely seen as idiosyncratic, Roe’s team viewed them as potential warning signs of broader strain, particularly among lower-income borrowers.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
17 Oct. 2025
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Climate models that predict collapses are also less accurate when forecasting interactions between multiple tipping points.—
Alexandra A Phillips,
The Conversation,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Relapses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/relapses. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
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