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came up empty

phrase

past tense of come up empty
as in failed
to be unsuccessful We searched for a viable candidate but came up empty.

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for came up empty
  1. fell short
  2. fell flat
Phrase
  • But in other areas, the tobacco settlement fell short of its goals.
    — Susan Morrisey, STAT, 15 Sep. 2026
  • The 2025 Toyota bZ was also an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick+ award winner, but the 2026 version fell short of the organization's most stringent recent round of testing.
    — Keith Laing, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of fell short
Phrase
  • Instead, the administration has proposed cutting more than 9,400 of my fellow workers and launched a new effort to privatize TSA — Horizon 25 — after the TSA Gold+ privatization campaign fell flat.
    — Hydrick Thomas, New York Daily News, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Challenges to General Assembly incumbents fell flat Anti-incumbent sentiment didn't trickle down to the General Assembly, where the small number of incumbents facing primary challenges all held on to their seats.
    — Antonia Noori Farzan, The Providence Journal, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of fell flat
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

came up
came up empty
came up with
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Came up empty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/came%20up%20empty. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

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