# relapse

> English word · Verb · IPA /ɹɪˈlæps/ · frequency rank #19,187

## Definitions
1. To fall back again; to slide or turn back into a former state or practice.
2. To recur; to worsen, be aggravated (after a period of improvement).
3. To return to a vice, especially self-harm or alcoholism, failing to maintain abstinence.
4. To slip or slide back physically; to turn back.

## Etymology
From Latin relapsus, past participle of relabi (“to slide back, fall back”), from re- (“back”) + labi (“to slip, slide, fall”).

## Easily confused with
- **relate** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relapse-vs-relate)
- **release** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relapse-vs-release)

## Common misspellings (10)
`erlapse`, `realpse`, `relapes`, `relappse`, `relapsse`, `relaspe`, `rellapse`, `relpase`, `rleapse`, `rrelapse`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/relapse