derail

Meanings

1. 1verbtransitive or intransitive

   To cause a train or its carriages to leave the railway tracks accidentally.

   Grammar: Can take an object (derail a train) or be used without one (the train derailed).

   Patterns

   • derail a train
   • the train derailed

   The freight train derailed just outside the station.

   A broken signal derailed the express train.

   Fortunately, no one was hurt when the carriages derailed.

2. 2verbtransitive

   To disrupt or ruin a plan, process, or discussion so that it cannot continue normally.

   Grammar: Takes an object: derail the negotiations.

   Patterns

   • derail a plan
   • derail negotiations
   • derail a career

   The scandal derailed his political career.

   Heavy rain derailed the outdoor wedding plans.

   A single question from the audience derailed the entire presentation.

Word forms

Common combinations

derail a train

The saboteurs tried to derail a train carrying supplies.

derail negotiations

The last-minute demand derailed negotiations between the two sides.

derail a career

One mistake can derail a promising career.

derail the process

Unexpected costs derailed the process before it even started.

Synonyms and how they differ

wreck

Wreck emphasizes physical destruction, while derail often refers to a train leaving its tracks or a plan being disrupted.

disrupt

Disrupt is more general and can mean interrupting any activity; derail suggests a more serious, often final, breakdown.

undermine

Undermine means weakening something gradually, while derail often implies a sudden, complete failure.

Opposites

Word family

derailment noun

The act or instance of a train leaving its tracks, or a plan being disrupted.

Commonly confused: derail or derange?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “derail”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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