SETBACKS Synonyms: 27 Similar and Opposite Words

setbacks

noun

plural of setback

as in reversals

a change in status for the worse usually temporarily the colonists persevered despite suffering setbacks that would have discouraged lesser souls

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

status quos

Example Sentences

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 setbacks Last week, City & State reported payments were late again this year in 3-K and Pre-K, and The New York Times later reported the same setbacks were also straining the new 2-K pilot program, renewing scrutiny of the delays. — Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 31 Aug. 2026 More than four decades ago, after months of setbacks in the war against Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, thousands of young Iranian troops launched a surprise offensive that turned the tide. — Mostafa Salem, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026 The game’s release has faced several setbacks including leaks, delays and economic uncertainty. — Tanya Fedak, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026 Louizos died Tuesday in New York of multiple myeloma following a series of health setbacks dating to an accident on horseback while on vacation in Greece last year, her wife, artistic director and producer Robyn Goodman, announced. — Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 28 Aug. 2026 These setbacks have left vast portions of the multibillion-dollar site vacant, prompting calls to pivot away from mixed-use retail toward … something else. — Ross Marchand, Baltimore Sun, 27 Aug. 2026 Advertisement As Anthropic surged, OpenAI suffered a series of setbacks, including a spate of leadership departures. — Alex Heath, Time, 26 Aug. 2026 But for a long time, his successes have seemed to barely keep pace with his setbacks. — Christopher Cox, Vanity Fair, 26 Aug. 2026 Trump has placed tariffs at the center of his agenda throughout his second term in the White House, though his use of the economic tool has faced some major legal setbacks and stoked heated pushback from other countries. — Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 25 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for setbacks

Noun

Following strong reversals from those lows, GPC went on to produce multi-year advances of approximately 180%, 375%, and 280%, respectively.

— Frank Cappelleri, CNBC, 26 Aug. 2026
Pharmaceutical companies will be looking for changes at the agency, too, after rejections or reversals of biotech drugs intended for rare diseases.

— Matthew Perrone, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of reversals

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set back

setbacks

set by

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“Setbacks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/setbacks. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of setbacks

noun

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