derail

verb

de·​rail di-ˈrāl 

dē-

derailed; derailing; derails

transitive verb

1

: to cause to run off the rails

2

a

: to obstruct the progress of : frustrate

security problems derailed the tour

b

: to upset the stability or composure of

divorce … can seriously derail an employee

—Joanne Gordon

intransitive verb

: to leave the rails

derailment

di-ˈrāl-mənt 

dē-

noun

Synonyms

• distract
• disturb
• bother
• worry
• alarm
• concern
• unsettle
• agitate
• anger

Examples of derail in a Sentence

The train derailed in heavy snow.

The train was derailed by heavy snow.

Recent Examples on the Web

Internally, teams across communications, legal, sustainability, and marketing must be equipped to recognize and respond to manipulated narratives that could damage credibility or derail strategy. —Felicia Jackson, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025

But after a season that threatened to become completely derailed, a mammoth 15 per cent have some doubts. —George Caulkin, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2025

At least 35 cars of a Union Pacific freight train derailed in Texas on Tuesday afternoon. —Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025

The change has derailed many of those students’ graduation plans and, for some, made higher education completely inaccessible. —Garrett Shanley, Miami Herald, 13 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French dérailler to throw off the track, from dé- de- + rail, from English

First Known Use

1850, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for derail

• airmail
• assail
• avail
• bewail
• blackmail
• cattail
• cocktail
• curtail
• detail
• dovetail
• email
• entail

Kids Definition

derail

verb

de·​rail di-ˈrā(ə)l 

: to cause to run off the rails

a train derailed by heavy snow

derailment

-mənt 

noun