: having ceased to be active in practice, membership, or belief
a lapsed Catholic
Examples of lapsed in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Cole Haan saw a 30 percent increase in business from former Saks shoppers, and Rent-the-Runway saw spending among lapsed Saks shoppers rise more than 75 percent year-over-year.
—
David Moin, Footwear News, 20 Jan. 2026
Revelations about the apparent lapsed deadline are noteworthy as the team weighs its future home after its lease in Kansas City expires in 2031.
—Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 9 Jan. 2026
The legislation extends the subsidies for three years and would apply retroactively to cover lapsed subsidies in early 2026.
—Marissa Meador, IndyStar, 8 Jan. 2026
The National Book Awards’ 2025 fiction prize went to The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother), by Rabih Alameddine, a novel about a lapsed writer living unhappily with his mom in Beirut.
—Emma Alpern, Vulture, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lapsed
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
David Moin, Footwear News, 20 Jan. 2026
Revelations about the apparent lapsed deadline are noteworthy as the team weighs its future home after its lease in Kansas City expires in 2031.
—Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 9 Jan. 2026
The legislation extends the subsidies for three years and would apply retroactively to cover lapsed subsidies in early 2026.
—Marissa Meador, IndyStar, 8 Jan. 2026
The National Book Awards’ 2025 fiction prize went to The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother), by Rabih Alameddine, a novel about a lapsed writer living unhappily with his mom in Beirut.
—Emma Alpern, Vulture, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lapsed
Cite this Entry
“Lapsed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lapsed. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
