re·lapse
(rĭ-lăps′)intr.v. re·lapsed,
re·laps·ing,
re·laps·es 1. To return to a former state.
2. a. To become sicker after partial recovery from an illness.
b. To recur. Used of an illness.
3. To slip back into bad ways; backslide.
n. (rē′lăps, rĭ-lăps′) A return to a former state, especially after apparent improvement.
[Middle English relapsen, to forswear, from Latin relābī, relāps-, to fall back gradually : re-, re- + lābī, to slide.]
re·laps′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.