recidivism
noun
Did you know?
The re- in recidivism is the same re- in relapse and return, and like those words recidivism is about going back: it’s a tendency to relapse, especially into criminal behavior. Recidivism is a 19th century French borrowing that’s ultimately from a Latin word meaning “to relapse into sin or crime.” In borrowing recidivism, English was itself engaging in a kind of recidivism: the same Latin source of recidivism had been nabbed in the 16th century to form the much less common recidivate, meaning “to fall into or exhibit recidivism.”
Examples of recidivism in a Sentence
Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 16 Sep. 2025
By embedding halfway houses into the federal transition process, Bush underscored his belief that effective reentry programs could reduce recidivism and strengthen families, turning correctional policy toward rehabilitation as much as punishment.
—Walter Pavlo, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Many focus on the recidivism of individual defendants rather than overall crime rates.
—Melissa Goldin, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
But CoreCivic facilities Trousdale and Hardeman had by far the longest waitlists for cognitive behavioral programs, which can help with reentry and recidivism.
—Melissa Brown, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for recidivism
Cite this Entry
“Recidivism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recidivism. Accessed 24 Sep. 2025.
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recidivism
noun
A. E. Kazdin et al.Legal Definition
recidivism
noun
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