置(お)いてけぼり

おいてけぼり
noun
being left behind, being abandoned
informalspokensociety
1. being left behind, being abandoned, being excluded
The state of being left behind by others who have moved on. Can refer to physically being left somewhere or figuratively being excluded from a group activity or social trend.
一人(ひとり)だけ置(お)いてけぼりにされた。
I was the only one left behind.
技術(ぎじゅつ)の進歩(しんぽ)に置(お)いてけぼりにされている気(き)がする。
I feel like I'm being left behind by technological progress.
みんなが先(さき)に行(い)ってしまって、弟(おとうと)は置(お)いてけぼりを食(く)らって泣(な)き出(だ)した。
Everyone went on ahead, and my little brother started crying because he was left behind.

Usage

Most commonly used in the pattern 置(お)いてけぼりにされる (to be left behind) or 置(お)いてけぼりを食(く)らう (to get left behind). The word has a childish, colloquial nuance and conveys a sense of being unfairly excluded or forgotten.

Etymology

Derived from 置(お)いていく (to leave behind) with the suffix ぼり. Also written as 置(お)いてきぼり.

Common collocations

  • 置(お)いてけぼりにする: to leave someone behind
  • 置(お)いてけぼりにされる: to be left behind
  • 置(お)いてけぼりを食(く)らう: to get left behind
general
Added 2026.2.27 15:24 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
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