Search results
- Dictionaryderail/diːˈreɪl/
verb
- 1. cause (a train or tram) to leave its tracks accidentally: "a train was derailed after it collided with a herd of cattle"
Powered by Oxford Dictionaries
DERAIL definition: 1. If a train derails or is derailed, it comes off the railway tracks. 2. to prevent a plan or…. Learn more.
The meaning of DERAIL is to cause to run off the rails. How to use derail in a sentence.
DERAIL meaning: 1. If a train derails or is derailed, it comes off the railway tracks. 2. to prevent a plan or…. Learn more.
verb (used with object) to cause (a train, streetcar, etc.) to run off the rails of a track. to cause to fail or become deflected from a purpose; reduce or delay the chances for success or development of: Being drafted into the army derailed his career for two years.
To derail something such as a plan or a series of negotiations means to prevent it from continuing as planned.
[transitive] derail something to stop a process from continuing in the way it was intended to. This latest incident could derail the peace process. It is claims of financial irregularities which could ultimately derail his campaign. The company’s plans were initially derailed by problems with licence agreements.
1. To run or cause to run off the rails. 2. To come or bring to a sudden halt: a campaign derailed by lack of funds; a policy that derailed under the new administration. [French dérailler : dé-, off (from Old French de-; see de-) + rail, rail (from English; see rail1 ).] de·rail′ment n.
