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derailment

American  
[dee-reyl-muhnt] / diˈreɪl mənt /

noun

  1. the act or process of derailing.

  2. Psychiatry. loosening of associations.

Etymology

Origin of derailment

1940–45; derail + -ment, or < French déraillement

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Derailment on the rail line’s very first trip proved catastrophic because of this ruinous mismanagement by an agency whose operations are a massive regional concern.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 13, 2019

“I find this delay unnecessary and unacceptable,” she wrote to a local official, in an email with the subject line, “The Derailment of What is Best for Manitowish Waters.”

From New York Times • Jun. 7, 2018

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.