DERAILED Synonyms: 92 Similar and Opposite Words

derailed

verb

past tense of derail

as in distracted

to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy according to police, the suspect had been derailed in recent months by mounting financial problems

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Recent Examples of derailed Perhaps there is no hungrier team than the Broncos, whose 14-3 2025 season was derailed when quarterback Bo Nix was injured in the playoffs, forcing a backup to start the AFC championship game. — Nbc Sports, NBC news, 26 Aug. 2026 Max Meyer is still sidelined with a neck strain that has derailed the second half of his All-Star season. — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 25 Aug. 2026 His time at receiver has been limited behind Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in Cincinnati and injuries have derailed too many seasons. — Paul Dehner Jr, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026 If Richardson could no longer coach, the parents feared, all of that might be derailed. — Molly Hensley-Clancy, ProPublica, 20 Aug. 2026 The height of hurricane season looms, and Gulf Coast refineries have in the past been derailed by major hurricanes hitting the Gulf Coast. — Matt Egan, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026 Leading the way on offense will be two players whose junior seasons were derailed by injuries, running back Ollie Steiner and wide receiver Jack Burger. — Steve Reaven, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026 On June 10, 1971, an Amtrak train derailed near Tonti, about 250 miles southwest of Chicago. — Todd Feurer, CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026 Injuries have derailed him since then, with Minnesota becoming his fifth team in four years. — ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for derailed

Verb

You’re not distracted by the clients waiting behind you or the sense that someone is watching and waiting for your chair to open up.

— Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
If it is blocked, both studios could emerge from the litigation having spent a year distracted and constrained while the rest of the industry moved forward.

— Cory Jacobson, HollywoodReporter, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of distracted

Verb

Peonies don’t like to be disturbed and may not bloom the next year, but division is sometimes necessary.

— Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 22 Aug. 2026
The study hypothesized that the sickle was added before the body fully decomposed since no joints were detached or displaced, as archaeologists would expect if a grave were to be disturbed after the body became a skeleton.

— Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of disturbed

Verb

Garcia said that before the attack, residents were already alarmed by a May news release from the city manager of neighboring Rio Vista, who warned that the project and potential annexation could open the door to a giant data center being built.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026
Terrified Jewish voters—alarmed by progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed’s anti-Zionist rhetoric—are fleeing to Republican Mike Rogers for self-preservation.

— Staff, FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of alarmed

Verb

Right-handed reliever Joel Peguero (left hamstring strain) will be shut down for the rest of the year due to a recurring hamstring strain that’s bothered him since spring training.

— Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 22 Aug. 2026
Woolen’s reaching hands bothered Brown enough that, while fielding another slant, Brown lost his grip on the football, which popped into the air.

— Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of bothered

Verb

The British Royal Navy, worried about French ships falling into German hands following their ally’s defeat, sunk the fleet in the port of Mers-el-Kébir, near Oran in Algeria.

— Rakesh Kumar, Fortune, 21 Aug. 2026
Last week, biologists opened pens and freed two birds early, worried they might be killed.

— Paul Rogers, Mercury News, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of worried

Verb

The White House had previously angered US ranchers by quadrupling low-tariff imports of Argentine beef to cool prices.

— Max Saltman, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2026
During a joint practice last summer in Houston, Moehrig decked Texans wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson on a hard but clean hit that angered a few of Hutchinson’s teammates.

— Joseph Person, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of angered

Verb

But the car has been plagued with unreliability, most of it affecting George Russell and not Kimi Antonelli (who now, like Button in 2009, has a commanding lead over everyone else in the driver’s championship).

— Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 24 Aug. 2026
Díaz, the club’s $69-million offseason prize, blew three save opportunities and was plagued by shaky outings after returning from elbow surgery.

— Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of plagued

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“Derailed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/derailed. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of derailed

verb

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