All 5 Uses of
lapse
in
Great Expectations
- Each of these exclamations was a shriek; and I must remark of my sister, what is equally true of all the violent women I have ever seen, that passion was no excuse for her, because it is undeniable that instead of lapsing into passion, she consciously and deliberately took extraordinary pains to force herself into it, and became blindly furious by regular stages; "what was the name he gave me before the base man who swore to defend me?†
Chpt 15
- He was arranging his fruit in plates while we talked, which divided his attention, and was the cause of his having made this lapse of a word.†
Chpt 22
- When Miss Havisham had fixed her attention on me, she said, speaking as if there had been no lapse in our dialogue,— "What else?"†
Chpt 44 *
- "Not personally," said I. The truth was, that she had objected to me as an expensive companion who did Herbert no good, and that, when Herbert had first proposed to present me to her, she had received the proposal with such very moderate warmth, that Herbert had felt himself obliged to confide the state of the case to me, with a view to the lapse of a little time before I made her acquaintance.†
Chpt 45
- I reminded him of the false hopes into which I had lapsed, the length of time they had lasted, and the discovery I had made: and I hinted at the danger that weighed upon my spirits.†
Chpt 51
Definition:
-
(lapse as in: a lapse in judgement) a change in behavior or state--usually undesired such as a temporary failureThe exact meaning of this sense of lapse is often subject to its context:
- basic example that simply indicates an undesired change in behavior -- "lapsed into alcoholism"
- example indicating that the change was short-term and due to a failure (often of effort or diligence) -- "a lapse in judgment"
- example indicating return to a previous undesired behavior or state -- "lapsed into her old bad habits"
- examples indicating a change in what was occurring where the change is not necessarily negative -- "There was a lapse in the conversation," or "She stopped talking as she lapsed into her own internal world."