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
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Recent Examples of cropper
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
Zelensky came a cropper when trying the same thing — but his stock soared back home at a time when Trump seems to be trying to oust him.
—Stephen Collinson, CNN, 15 Mar. 2025
DeSantis' landslide will likely turn out to be the historically most important result from last Tuesday, akin to but with even greater consequences than George W. Bush's victory in Texas in 1998, another midterm year in which the GOP otherwise came a cropper.
—Bradley Gitz, Arkansas Online, 28 Nov. 2022
But on closer inspection, there are differences: This cropper is shirtless, his backside a bit too pert, and the stalks of asparagus growing from the ground are, in fact, penises.
—Max Norman David Chow Victoria Petro-Conroy, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2022
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
Zelensky came a cropper when trying the same thing — but his stock soared back home at a time when Trump seems to be trying to oust him.
—Stephen Collinson, CNN, 15 Mar. 2025
DeSantis' landslide will likely turn out to be the historically most important result from last Tuesday, akin to but with even greater consequences than George W. Bush's victory in Texas in 1998, another midterm year in which the GOP otherwise came a cropper.
—Bradley Gitz, Arkansas Online, 28 Nov. 2022
But on closer inspection, there are differences: This cropper is shirtless, his backside a bit too pert, and the stalks of asparagus growing from the ground are, in fact, penises.
—Max Norman David Chow Victoria Petro-Conroy, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cropper
Noun
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The play focuses on the assassination of the title character by a conspiracy headed by Brutus and Cassius and the defeat of the conspirators in battle by Caesar’s successors, the triumvirate of Marc Antony, Octavian, and Lepidus.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
23 Oct. 2025
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Six of their big chances came against struggling Forest, with Newcastle converting just one of those, while four more came in the wild 3-2 defeat against Liverpool.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Regarding the lack of disciplinary records documenting policy violations, Payne placed blame on prison staff for failure to write Holt up for disciplinary violations.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
22 Oct. 2025
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The failure to see this coming was an inexcusable Democratic strategic catastrophe.—
David Faris,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Energy revenue is the linchpin of Russia’s economy, allowing Putin to pour money into the armed forces without worsening inflation for everyday people and avoiding a currency collapse.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
23 Oct. 2025
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Second-half collapse The Suns cut the deficit to 12 after outscoring the Kings 16-11 to start the second half.—
Jason Anderson,
Sacbee.com,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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After the crash, the SUV was reportedly struck by a tractor-trailer that was traveling in the right lane behind the vehicle.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
23 Oct. 2025
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Five people were killed and one was injured in five vehicle crashes on Arkansas roads from Saturday through Wednesday, according to preliminary police reports.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cropper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cropper. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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