gain ground

Idioms  

1. Advance, make progress; also, win acceptance. For example, The new conservation policy is gaining ground among the voters . This expression alludes to a military advance in which an army literally takes territory from the enemy. Its figurative use dates from about 1800. For an antonym, see lose ground .

2. . Encroach on, advance at the expense of. For example, Door-to-door canvassing helped them gain ground on the opposition .

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Example Sentences

After Wimbledon, though, Draper has only 50 points to defend for the rest of the year, and so will have the chance to gain ground rapidly.

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

Netflix continued to gain ground, rising 1% to $97.24.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 2, 2026

Arch-rival Anthropic, founded by former OpenAI employees, continues to gain ground and grab headlines for its well-regarded Claude AI models.

From Barron's • Feb. 27, 2026

Nike has sought to gain ground on its turnaround despite tariffs and ongoing weakness in China dampening its efforts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 26, 2026

But she always claimed she had done whatever it was she'd done to gain ground for us all.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez