FALLING BEHIND Synonyms: 96 Similar and Opposite Words

falling behind

phrase

present participle of fall behind

as in delaying

to move or act slowly He lost his footing and fell behind in the relay.

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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.

Recent Examples of falling behind Yet the proportion of Americans struggling with high debt payments and falling behind on their debt payments jumped, a sign of the toll that sharply higher inflation has taken on lower-income Americans. — ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026 Lose World Series in five to the Dodgers in ’24 after falling behind 3-0. — Mike Lupica, New York Daily News, 8 Oct. 2026 When aggressive payments lead to falling behind elsewhere A debt payoff plan should be challenging enough to make progress without resulting in the remainder of the monthly budget being unworkable. — Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026 After falling behind 21-7 midway through the second quarter, Dante Reno rallied Yale (2-1) with an inspirational performance, completing 22 of 39 passes for 298 yards and four touchdowns. — Staff Reports, Hartford Courant, 3 Oct. 2026 Then in the third quarter, on the Patriots’ first play from scrimmage after falling behind 21-3, Maye had a pass intercepted by Jacksonville’s Jarrian Jones. — Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026 In the race to bring AI to the enterprise, Microsoft has been criticized for falling behind Anthropic's Claude and OpenAI's ChatGPT, so Friday's exuberant market reaction is notable. — Matthew J. Belvedere,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026 After falling behind 7-0 in the first quarter, the Falcons (1-2) scored 27 unanswered points and led by at least two possessions for the entire final quarter. — Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 25 Sep. 2026 Indiana seemingly followed suit on Thursday after falling behind by 30 in the third quarter, limiting Clark's floor time and seeing Sophie Cunningham held scoreless across 16 minutes. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 25 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for falling behind

marking time

Phrase

All the same, Adelaide believed in the importance of marking time.

— Yiyun Li, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2026
The moon represents creation and destruction, rebirth, eternity, the feminine, time, marking time, mystery, the night, and secrets.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of marking time

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falling back on

falling behind

falling down

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“Falling behind.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/falling%20behind. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of falling behind

phrase

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