How do you use "come a cropper" in a sentence?

He came a cropper trying to jump that fence. The scheme came a cropper when the funding was cut. If you're not careful, you'll come a cropper on those stairs.

come a cropper

Q: What does "come a cropper" mean?

fail badly or have an accident Suffer a heavy fall or major failure. Can be literal (falling off a horse) or metaphorical (business failure).

Slang Term BritishAustralian Unknown informal

Meaning: fail badly or have an accident

惨败，出事故

fracasar estrepitosamente o tener un accidente

大失敗する、ひどい目に遭う

크게 실패하다, 낭패를 보다

Suffer a heavy fall or major failure. Can be literal (falling off a horse) or metaphorical (business failure).

遭受严重摔倒或重大失败。可以是字面意义（从马上摔下来），也可以是隐喻（商业失败）。

Sufrir una caída fuerte o un fracaso importante. Puede ser literal (caerse del caballo) o metafórico (fracaso empresarial).

大きな転倒や重大な失敗を経験すること。文字通り（馬から落ちる）でも比喩的（事業の失敗）でも使える。

크게 넘어지거나 큰 실패를 겪는 것. 말에서 떨어지는 것(문자적)이나 사업 실패(비유적)에 모두 쓸 수 있다.

Examples

He came a cropper trying to jump that fence.
他试图跳过那道栅栏时摔了个大跟头。
Se pegó un batacazo intentando saltar esa valla.
あのフェンスを飛び越えようとして大コケした。
그는 저 울타리를 넘으려다 크게 넘어졌다.
The scheme came a cropper when the funding was cut.
资金被削减后，这个计划失败了。
El plan se fue al traste cuando cortaron la financiación.
資金が打ち切られて、その計画は失敗に終わった。
자금이 끊기면서 그 계획은 실패로 끝났다.
If you're not careful, you'll come a cropper on those stairs.
不小心的话，你会在那楼梯上摔跤的。
Si no tienes cuidado, te vas a dar un batacazo en esas escaleras.
気をつけないと、あの階段で転ぶよ。
조심하지 않으면 저 계단에서 넘어질 거야.

Pronunciation

Usage Guide

Context: casual, warning

Tone: concerned or amused

✓ Do Say

Describe failures
描述失败
describir fracasos
失敗を表す
실패를 묘사할 때
Warn of risk
警告风险
advertir del riesgo
リスクを警告する
위험을 경고할 때

✗ Don't Say

In formal contexts
不用于正式场合
No se usa en contextos formales
フォーマルな場面では使わない
격식 있는 자리에서

Origin & History

From horse riding - 'neck and crop' meant a heavy fall where horse and rider went down together. Recorded from the 1850s.

Cultural Context

Era: traditional

Generation: older

Social background: all