fall behind
Britishverb
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to drop back; fail to keep up
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to be in arrears, as with a payment
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Also, get behind.
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Lag, fail to keep up, as in You really must keep up with the others; if you fall behind you could get lost . [First half of 1500s]
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Be financially in arrears, as in He fell behind in his payments . [Mid-1800s]
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.
The English champions had slipped to sixth after a run of five league games without a win and fell behind to Anthony Gordon's strike for Newcastle.
From Barron's
Many middle-aged Americans have fallen behind on their retirement savings — but financial experts tell MarketWatch it’s not too late for people approaching their 60s to catch up.
From MarketWatch
Barcelona knew they needed to win to be confident of swerving the play-off round, but fell behind as early as the fourth minute.
From Barron's
It also cites a Times investigation that found that Edison fell behind in doing maintenance that it told state regulators was needed and began billing customers for.
From Los Angeles Times
The family soon found they were falling behind on payments and were under threat of having their home repossessed.
From BBC
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.
