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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Dissimilar Words
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
MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 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
This improves adherence to medical recommendations and reduces the likelihood of complications or relapses.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 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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Applying pressure can lead to defensive breakdowns, and having someone in the middle to clean things up remains crucial.—
Eric Koreen,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
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But Colleston Morgan, who leads the nonprofit advocacy group City Forward Collective, said Milwaukee public and private choice schools are comparable because their demographic breakdowns are mostly similar.—
Kayla Huynh,
jsonline.com,
1 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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Four senior players were ruled out with significant physical setbacks last week.—
Pol Ballús,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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For the United States, such setbacks can buy time—until different leadership in Washington once again has a vision of the future built around more than looking out for itself.—
JEFFREY PRESCOTT,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Leavitt and Vance told reporters that a prolonged shutdown would require permanent cuts, even while lapses in spending generally only lead to temporary furloughs.—
Franco Ordoñez,
NPR,
2 Oct. 2025
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Since then, there have been numerous threats of a shutdown amid potential federal funding lapses, that the showdowns have become almost routine.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
30 Sep. 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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These are harder to predict than simple recessions.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
21 Sep. 2025
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Bill Brown, who started the technical school with his father, Don, in 1984, tells prospective students that heating, ventilation and air conditioning repair is an industry that can weather downturns and recessions.—
Shawn Price,
Oc Register,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
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However, the Tsukahara family’s attorney emphasized that multiple factors can contribute to crashes while highlighting Tesla’s responsibility for occupant safety systems.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
3 Oct. 2025
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Expect car crashes, characters being stuck on desert islands, murder and other dramatic storylines.—
Rachel Choy,
Refinery29,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Avoiding collapses like the fourth quarter on Saturday will be paramount in doing so.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
6 Oct. 2025
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The recent collapses were a result of hurricanes Humberto and Imelda, which made a mess of the Atlantic Ocean in the coastal waters off the Outer Banks.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Relapses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/relapses. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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