Fall through the cracks

Definition

To be overlooked, ignored, or failed to be dealt with properly by a system or process. Refers to something or someone that doesn't receive proper attention or care due to gaps in oversight or responsibility.

Etymology

The phrase draws from the literal image of small objects falling through gaps between floorboards or pavement stones where they become lost or unreachable. The metaphorical usage emerged in the mid-20th century, particularly in discussions about social services and bureaucratic systems.

Kelly Says

This expression perfectly captures modern anxieties about impersonal systems and institutional failures. It's particularly poignant because it implies that the failure isn't necessarily intentional—things simply slip through structural gaps, making the oversight seem both inevitable and tragic.

Translations

AMአማርኛ
ሰፍር በ裂ታት
se-fer be le-cha-at
ARالعربية
انزلق من خلال الشقوق
in-zalak min hal-ka al-sha-qūq
BNবাংলা
ছিদেতে পড়ে যাওয়া
chhi-de-te por-e ja-owa
CACatalà
caure entre les esquerdes
kaw-re en-tre les es-ker-des
CSČeština
padnout do spár
pa-nout do spa-r
DADansk
falde ned i revnerne
fal-de ned i rev-ner-ne
DEDeutsch
durch die Lücken fallen
do͝oːr diː lyuːkən faːlən
ELΕλληνικά
να πέσει στα ρήγματα
na pe-sei sta re-gmata
ESEspañol
caer entre las grietas
ka-er en-tre las hree-etas
FAفارسی
در شکافها افتادن
dar she-kaf-ha efta-dan
FISuomi
putoaa rakoihin
pu-toaa ra-ko-ihin
FRFrançais
passer entre les mailles du filet
pa-ser ahn-tre lay may-y duh feh-lay
GUGU
ખાંડામાં પડવું
khaan-da-maan pad-vuun
HAHA
rufe a tsoffofi
ru-fe a ts-off-ofi
HEעברית
להתגלגל במעברים
le-hit-gal-gal ba-me-a-ver-im
HIहिन्दी
खामोश हो जाना
kha-mo-sh ho ja-na
HUMagyar
beszakad a repedésekben
be-sza-kad a re-pe-de-sek-ben
IDBahasa Indonesia
jatuh ke celah
ja-tuh ke ce-lah
IGIG
topa n'eche
to-pa n'e-che
ITItaliano
cadere tra le crepe
ka-de-re tra le kre-pe
JA日本語
隙間をすり抜ける
su-kima wo su-ri-nu-ke-ru
KKKK
жазықтар арқылы түсіп кету
ja-zyq-tar ar-ky-ly ty-sy-p ke-tu
KMKM
បាត់ទៅក្នុងជ្រុង
ba-at to-u k-nu-ng ch-ru-ng
KO한국어
틈새로 빠져들다
teumsa-reo ppa-jeo-deul-da
MRMR
फुग्यात पडणे
fu-gya-at pa-d-na-e
MSBahasa Melayu
jatuh ke celah
ja-tuh ke ce-lah
MYမြန်မာ
ရိုးရိုး ကြောင့် ကျသွား
yo-yo k-yawng h-k-ya-sh-wa
NLNederlands
door de kieren vallen
doːr də keːrən faːlə
NONorsk
falle ned i sprekker
fal-le ned i spre-kker
PAPA
ਖਿੱચੜਾਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਡਿੱਗਣਾ
khic-cha-ran me-ch dig-na
PLPolski
spaść między szczelinami
spasć między szcze-li-na-mi
PTPortuguês
cair pelas rachaduras
kaɪr pe-las ra-ʃa-du-ras
RORomână
cădea în fisuri
ka-dea in fi-su-ri
RUРусский
провалиться в щели
pro-va-lit-sya v shche-li
SVSvenska
falla mellan sprickorna
fal-la me-llan spri-kor-na
SWKiswahili
kuanguka kupitia pengavuli
ku-an-gu-ka ku-pi-th-ia pe-ngav-u-li
TAதமிழ்
அடைப்புகளுக்குள் விழுவது
a-dai-ppu-kal-kku-l vi-zhu-vat-hu
TEతెలుగు
ఖీణలో పడిపోవడం
khi-na-lo pa-di-po-va-dam
THไทย
หล่นลงไปในรอยแตก
lon long pai nai roi dtaeng
TLTL
mamatay sa mga bitag
ma-ma-tay sa mga bi-tag
TRTürkçe
çatlaklardan düşmek
tʃa-tlak-lan-dan dyu-ş-mek
UKУкраїнська
провалитися в тріщини
pro-va-lit-sya v try-shchy-ny
URاردو
کچڑوں میں گرنا
kach-ron mein gar-na
VITiếng Việt
rơi vào những khe hở
roi vao nhung khe ho
YOYO
jẹ́ sílẹ̀
je si-le
ZH中文
掉进缝隙里
diào jìn féng xì lǐ
ZUZU
funda ezindlu
fun-da ez-in-dlu

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