bring up the rear

1. Be last in a line or sequence, as in As a slow walker, I'm used to bringing up the rear, or In test results Tom always brought up the rear. This term almost certainly came from the military but the earliest citation given by the Oxford English Dictionary is from a 1643 religious treatise by Sir Thomas Browne: “My desires onely are . . . to be but the last man, and bring up the Rere in Heaven.”

Example Sentences

While presenting the last award during the 1988 Academy Awards, Murphy went off-script and declared, “I’m going to give this award, but Black people will not ride in the caboose of society and not bring up the rear anymore.”

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That’s why, when you look at the chart, fruits and nuts bring up the rear, with something like 1 percent of the climate impact of beef.

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Durand and two others would bring up the rear.

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The counties with the highest death rates bring up the rear in getting vaccinated.

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“Dylan will lead now. I’ll bring up the rear.”

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Related Words

• chase 
• fall behind 
• falter 
• lag 
• pull