backslides
Returns to sin
Backslides is the third-person singular of backslide, meaning to revert to bad habits or sinful behavior after a period of improvement.
The word comes from religious contexts—a reformed sinner who backslides returns to former ways: He backslides every time he visits his old neighborhood.
The past tense is backslid or backslided.
Return to former illness
- regressRevert to earlier state
- revertReturn to earlier condition
- declineDecrease or refuse
- deteriorateGrow worse over time
slip · fall · retreat · recede · worsen · degenerate · devolve · lapse
Compulsive substance reliance
- sobrietyUnimpaired mental state
- temptationUrge toward the unwise
- relapseReturn to former illness
- withdrawalAct of taking away
craving · abstinence · rehabilitation · detox · trigger · binge · dependency · therapy
relapse
Return to former illness
deteriorate · slip · fall · retreat · recede · worsen · degenerate · devolve · lapse · setback
addiction
Compulsive substance reliance
- sobrietyUnimpaired mental state
- temptationUrge toward the unwise
- relapseReturn to former illness
withdrawal · craving · abstinence · rehabilitation · detox · trigger · binge · dependency · therapy · counseling
backslidesprogresses
Moves forward steadily
advances · improves · moves forward · forges ahead · pushes forward
backslidesperseveres
Continues despite difficulty
holds steady · maintains · keeps faith · holds firm · stands fast
backslidesreforms
Corrective institutional changes
repents · redeems oneself · mends one's ways · improves · converts
backslide, backsliding, backslider, backslid, backsliders, backslidden