as in bothering
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 derailing
California Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Porter threatened to walk off an interview with a local TV reporter in 2025, derailing her campaign.
—
Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 9 June 2026
The dispute risks derailing the discussions on a truce extension, reopening the Strait of Hormuz and future talks over Iran’s nuclear program.
—Arsalan Shahla, Fortune, 7 June 2026
The toxic dating myth that's derailing our relationships Being unbothered and nonchalant has become a dating ideal, accelerated by a swiping culture that has eroded our ability to connect in person.
—Sabrina Romanoff, CNBC, 5 June 2026
Throughout the finale, Niall continues to struggle with his identity, using chemsex parties as a crutch that are slowly but surely derailing his life.
—Barry Levitt, Time, 29 May 2026
The broken wheel led to 10 train cars derailing, the accident report said.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 22 May 2026
At one point early on, high levels of soil contaminants become a concern at fields across the region, almost derailing the whole season.
—Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
Cal Coast then accused SDCCU of intentionally derailing the merger without a valid cause.
—Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 May 2026
State AGs have notched some successes recently, temporarily derailing the merger of big broadcasters Nexstar and Tegna and obtaining a settlement from Live Nation.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 23 Apr. 2026
Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 9 June 2026
The dispute risks derailing the discussions on a truce extension, reopening the Strait of Hormuz and future talks over Iran’s nuclear program.
—Arsalan Shahla, Fortune, 7 June 2026
The toxic dating myth that's derailing our relationships Being unbothered and nonchalant has become a dating ideal, accelerated by a swiping culture that has eroded our ability to connect in person.
—Sabrina Romanoff, CNBC, 5 June 2026
Throughout the finale, Niall continues to struggle with his identity, using chemsex parties as a crutch that are slowly but surely derailing his life.
—Barry Levitt, Time, 29 May 2026
The broken wheel led to 10 train cars derailing, the accident report said.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 22 May 2026
At one point early on, high levels of soil contaminants become a concern at fields across the region, almost derailing the whole season.
—Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
Cal Coast then accused SDCCU of intentionally derailing the merger without a valid cause.
—Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 May 2026
State AGs have notched some successes recently, temporarily derailing the merger of big broadcasters Nexstar and Tegna and obtaining a settlement from Live Nation.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for derailing
Verb
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Instead of lobbing the ball from end to end, teams played straight up the gut (brighter red colour), barely even bothering to use the wings (darker blue colour).—
John Muller,
New York Times,
6 June 2026
-
Brunson turned on the boosters in the second half, attacking the Spurs' defense and showing little sign that his knee was bothering him.—
Alejandro Avila,
FOXNews.com,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
Finally, toolbars are becoming more consistent, and the distracting icons in drop-down menus are quietly disappearing.—
Edward Mendelson,
PC Magazine,
10 June 2026
-
The formal obligation to bow or curtsy will force targets to bend a knee and break eye contact—a perfect opening for the President to place something distracting like a Twix bar on their heads.—
Dahlia Gallin Ramirez,
New Yorker,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
Iranian leadership complained that visas for key staff members were being held up and the tumult was disturbing its preparation for the tournament.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
11 June 2026
-
Fighting for your idea at the risk of disturbing the peace in the room is hard.—
Jem Aswad,
Variety,
11 June 2026
Verb
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And some of the capabilities that these models have to access systems, not only federal government systems, but financial systems, is very concerning to us.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
14 June 2026
-
With remote attacks, employees receive emails concerning invoices or data migrations.—
Gene Marks,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
The closures shrink the countywide advanced voting location network from 18 to 12 voting sites — alarming some Johnson County and city officials and the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas.—
Taylor O'Connor,
Kansas City Star,
11 June 2026
-
For Denver residents like Marisa Saturni-Johnson, the sirens were alarming enough to send her family into shelter.—
Sarah Horbacewicz,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Now, his husband has been left worrying and praying.—
Jenna DeAngelis,
CBS News,
9 Dec. 2025
-
Is there a health issue that's worrying you?—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
In the biblical Tower of Babel story, humans are driven by hubris to try to create a tower tall enough to touch the sky, angering God in the process.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
25 May 2026
-
The retailer scaled back Pride displays and rolled back DEI programs, angering its liberal customers.—
Nathaniel Meyersohn,
CNN Money,
20 May 2026
Verb
-
That was usually Andy agitating.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 June 2026
-
While Hegseth sought to avoid agitating China, two US treaty allies that form the First Island Chain alongside Taiwan had some of the sharpest remarks toward Beijing.—
Josh Xiao,
Fortune,
31 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Derailing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/derailing. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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