fall short
Not quite reach
To fall short is to fail to reach or achieve something expected or hoped for.
The phrase often appears with "of": The fundraiser fell short of its goal by several thousand dollars.
You can fall short of expectations, standards, targets, or ideals.
The expression derives from projectiles or thrown objects that land before reaching their intended destination—a physical shortfall that became a metaphor for any kind of inadequacy or insufficiency.
Fail to meet standards
- insufficientBelow required quantity
- inadequateNot sufficient for purpose
- deficientHaving too little
- wantingAbsent or insufficient
lacking · incomplete · below par · unsatisfactory · subpar · unmet · unfulfilled · miss the mark
Failure to satisfy expectations
- failureLack of success
- defeatVictory over another
- dismayDistressed loss of courage
- setbackReverse in progress
fiasco · regret · downfall · heartbreak · chagrin · bummer · miss · underdeliver
Amount still owed
- deficiencyLack of something needed
- inadequacyState of being insufficient
- scarcityInsufficiency of something needed
- paucityInsufficiency of amount
dearth · gap · undersupply · meagerness · sparsity · lack · incompleteness · underage
underperform
Fail to meet standards
- insufficientBelow required quantity
- inadequateNot sufficient for purpose
- deficientHaving too little
wanting · lacking · incomplete · below par · unsatisfactory · subpar · unmet · unfulfilled · miss the mark · trail
letdown
Failure to satisfy expectations
setback · fiasco · regret · downfall · heartbreak · chagrin · bummer · miss · underdeliver · frustration
deficit
Amount still owed
- deficiencyLack of something needed
- inadequacyState of being insufficient
- scarcityInsufficiency of something needed
paucity · dearth · gap · undersupply · meagerness · sparsity · lack · incompleteness · underage · arrears
- setbacksfailing, back to square one, stuck, losing, stumbles
- Standards & Benchmarksbenchmark, yardstick, gold standard, litmus test, acid test
- measurement idiomsinch by inch, give an inch, whole nine yards, by a mile, go the extra mile
- losing phrasesgame over, you lose, lose out, defeated, beaten
- mistakesmistake, mistakes, slip, error, errors
- comparison verbscompare, contrast, differentiate, distinguish, juxtapose