as in defeat
a falling short of one's goals
more than a few people were glad to see the obnoxiously smug skater come a cropper at the national championships
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of cropper
Two weeks after Alt’s ankle was mangled, depriving Herbert of his blindside protector, the quarterback and the offense came a cropper in a 30-6 blowout at Jacksonville in mid-November.
—
Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Jan. 2026
Trump administration says aid is a bridge to a more stable future
The Trump administration insists that the aid package will help farmers, and placed the blame on former President Joe Biden for the struggle that many croppers are fighting now.
—Laura Schulte, jsonline.com, 5 Jan. 2026
More recently, soybean croppers were angered by the financial support lent to Argentina, which went on to ship large quantities of its own soybeans to China.
—Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Still, with the disappointing box office of the first Horizon, the lack of Horizon II on the big screen, and third and fourth installments of Horizon looking as likely as a return of the Wild West itself, however this case ends up sorted, Costner may still come a cropper.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2025
In January, 1813, at York Castle, fourteen croppers stood trial for rioting and machine breaking, which Parliament had deemed a capital offense in the new Frame-Breaking Act.
—John Cassidy, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Jan. 2026
Trump administration says aid is a bridge to a more stable future
The Trump administration insists that the aid package will help farmers, and placed the blame on former President Joe Biden for the struggle that many croppers are fighting now.
—Laura Schulte, jsonline.com, 5 Jan. 2026
More recently, soybean croppers were angered by the financial support lent to Argentina, which went on to ship large quantities of its own soybeans to China.
—Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Still, with the disappointing box office of the first Horizon, the lack of Horizon II on the big screen, and third and fourth installments of Horizon looking as likely as a return of the Wild West itself, however this case ends up sorted, Costner may still come a cropper.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2025
In January, 1813, at York Castle, fourteen croppers stood trial for rioting and machine breaking, which Parliament had deemed a capital offense in the new Frame-Breaking Act.
—John Cassidy, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cropper
Noun
-
Burton finished with 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting in the first defeat for Golden State (2-1).—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 May 2026
-
On Wednesday, his son’s header was responsible for the Quakes’ first defeat since a 1-0 home loss to these Sounders on March 15.—
Jon Becker,
Mercury News,
14 May 2026
Noun
-
When Danh was initially hospitalized overseas on April 9, doctors diagnosed her with acute liver failure, among other serious health issues.—
Ashlyn Robinette,
PEOPLE,
12 May 2026
-
Despite these obvious failures, many still call for the rich to pay more taxes.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 May 2026
Noun
-
The collapse of the government is unlikely to significantly affect Latvia’s foreign policy, as all mainstream parties are some variant of pro-Ukraine and anti-Russia.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
15 May 2026
-
This explains why companies did not experience a commercial-traffic collapse.—
Ming Zhu,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
Noun
-
Drugs or alcohol do not appear to be factors in the crash, police said.—
Caleb Lunetta,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
14 May 2026
-
The outlet reported three people suffered injuries in the crash.—
Natalie Neysa Alund,
USA Today,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cropper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cropper. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
