to fall by the wayside
11
6.5
- idiom
- /fɔl baɪ ðə ˈweɪˌsaɪd/
- Informal
:
quedarse en el camino
- By announcing an ambitious two-year deadline for statehood, Fayyad reintroduced the timeline that had fallen by the wayside.
Well, I've seen people falling by the wayside for what you've just said.
- Well, I've seen people falling by the wayside for what you've just said.
- I also, again, the like dark academia part really kind of fell by the wayside.
- And then when I found skating, it wasn't that my academics fell by the wayside, but it was more that, oh, maybe I have something else here.
- So for that reason, it, it may fall by the wayside.
- Seems have seems to have been fallen by the wayside.
Examples
-
Unfortunately, many such get-fit resolutions fall by the wayside within a few weeks or months.
-
Many of his progressive promises before the election have fallen by the wayside since he won ...
Blog text (11) -
But that idea fell by the wayside, until now.
-
If one of us falls by the wayside, the others must go on.
-
Some fell by the wayside, others lost courage and turned back.
-
Even her promise to her mother, which indeed might be seen as more pressing, has fallen by the wayside at this point.
Academic text (2016) -
After he became famous, many of Hemingway's friends fell by the wayside for one reason or another.
Blog text (16) -
As time passes, ever more Americans are going to fall by the wayside, under-educated and denied opportunities.
Blog text (34) -
To Washington's disappointment, some of the bolder elements of Koizumi's package fell by the wayside.
Academic text (2003) -
If one of us falls by the wayside, the others must go on.
Synonyms
∞
1.2
To stop trying to do something or accept defeat
653
1.5
To stop trying when something is too hard
214
3.0
To leave a course, competition or group before finishing
29
4.9
Stop trying because you cannot win
27
4.8
To stop trying because you know you cannot succeed
5
6.9
To stop being used or followed
1
7.5
Stop taking part because it becomes too difficult
To stop trying because it seems pointless
Fail to keep up from the start while others move ahead
Antonyms
How Active
22
5.1
253
2.7
668
1.0
- Informal
11
6.5
214
3.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal components ('fall' + 'wayside' = to fall to the side of the road) provide a clear physical image of being left aside, so a learner who knows the words can likely infer a sense of being neglected or left behind. However, the precise sense of 'stop participating or being successful' is a figurative extension and not fully predictable from the parts alone, so the expression is only partially transparent to B1 learners.
Etymology
The idiom fall by the wayside may come from the simple image of someone walking and falling to the wayside, the side of the road where a tired traveler would stop. So, it now means 'to stop taking part or be left behind' when plans, people, or projects fail.