setback

/ˈsetbæk/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈsetbæk/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈset-ˌbak/ (ame, mw)

setback — noun

1. An event or situation that stops or slows down progress toward a goal, leaving y

1.名詞B2
釋義

An event or situation that stops or slows down progress toward a goal, leaving you further behind where you were before.

例句

Mizuki's recovery from surgery suffered a setback when she developed an infection.

suffer a setback — common with health or recovery

The company faced a major setback after losing its biggest client to a competitor.

face a major setback — typical in business contexts

同義詞
  • reverse

    more formal, especially common in financial or military writing

  • blow

    emphasises the emotional or psychological impact rather than the delay

  • hindrance

    focuses on the obstacle itself rather than the lost progress it causes

反義詞
  • breakthrough

    a sudden, important advance or discovery

  • boost

    something that helps or encourages progress

文法句型

suffer / face / experience + a setback

a setback + to / for + noun phrase

用法筆記

Commonly appears with the verbs 'suffer', 'face', 'experience', 'hit', and 'overcome'. A setback is usually temporary — unlike a 'failure', which can be final.

常見錯誤

❌We had a setback in the project.
✅The project suffered a major setback when funding was cut.
💡Add concrete context; a bare 'setback' is too vague for natural English.
❌I got a setback.
✅I experienced a setback.
💡'Get a setback' sounds unnatural; use 'suffer', 'face', or 'experience' instead.

setback — verb