Third-person singular present tense of backslide (he/she/it backslides), or plural noun meaning multiple instances of regression or loss of progress.
From 'backslide' with regular third-person singular conjugation ('-s') for the verb, or regular pluralization for the noun form.
Using 'backslides' as a noun—'his repeated backslides into old habits'—makes regression sound like countable events rather than a character flaw, which is actually more compassionate linguistically.
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