to break out or happen again. After years of gamblers anonymous, Tony thought he\\'d broken his compulsive slot machine playing, but it took only one trip to the Atlantic City for a full recrudescence--he lost $5k on the one armed bandit. syn-- reappear, revival,revolve,repeat. After years of gamblers anonymous, Tony thought he\\'d broken his compulsive slot machine playing, but it took only one trip to the Atlantic City for a full recrudescence--he lost $5k on the one armed bandit. Definition of Recrudescence ***a return of something after a period of inactivity or abatement Examples of Recrudescence in a sentence I thought my shingles outbreak subsided, but I experienced a recrudescence of the virus. After being in remission for several years, the recrudescence of my cancer was confirmed. The school was in turmoil after a recrudescence of chicken pox threatened to temporarily close the building. Though it was peaceful for a while, a recrudescence of tension brewed between the feuding families. Following the election, a recrudescence of human rights activists reignited their protests.