Synonyms of fall short

fall short

phrase

1

as in collapse

to be unsuccessful

The movie fell short of its viewers' expectations.

Synonyms & Similar Words

• collapse
• fail
• flop
• fold
• struggle
• strike out
• miss
• fall flat
• come to grief
• bomb
• lay an egg
• come up empty
• flame out
• tank
• wash out
• come a cropper
• die on the vine
• founder
• flunk
• crater
• fall on one's face
• decline
• crash
• slip
• go under
• slump
• skid
• crumble
• flounder
• wane
• sink
• misfire
• miscarry
• implode
• self-destruct

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• go
• go over
• succeed
• deliver
• work out
• click
• pan out
• come off
• cook
• thrive
• flourish
• triumph
• win
• prevail
• prosper

2

as in come to grief

to go wrong

The biography falls short by neglecting to explore the subject's faults as well as his virtues.

Synonyms & Similar Words

• come to grief
• fail
• fall flat
• stall
• come a cropper
• misfire
• die
• miss
• miscarry
• struggle
• flop
• founder
• fold
• crash
• wash out
• break down
• tank
• flame out
• bomb
• skid
• slump
• conk (out)
• slip
• flounder
• bust
• flunk
• wane
• decline
• fizzle

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• succeed
• prevail
• thrive
• flourish
• prosper

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of fall short

But translation services that the court provides during hearings often fall short, Schlake said. — Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 26 Aug. 2026

An insurance deal falls short of promises Kennedy again took to the HHS stage in June 2025, this time with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz, to make what was billed as a game-changing announcement. — Stephanie Armour, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026

Did Lucas and Moore’s original screenplay for The Hangover set the bar so high back in 2009 (near $470M global gross in what became a trilogy) that all subsequent comedies would fall short? — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 24 Aug. 2026

Max Meizlish, a former Treasury official and research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said outright that Monday’s announcement falls short of the objective. — Christian Datoc, The Washington Examiner, 24 Aug. 2026