eat (someone's) dust

eat (someone's) dust

To be outperformed or outrun by someone, usually by a very wide margin. The veteran runner was performing at the best of his career, and everyone else in the race ate his dust. We've been eating the competitor's dust since they released their new line of smartphones.

See also: dust, eat

eat someone's dust

AMERICAN

If you eat someone's dust, you are a long way behind them in a race or a competitive situation. If you ignore new production methods, you will have to eat your competitors' dust.

See also: dust, eat

eat someone's dust

fall far behind someone in a competitive situation. North American informal

1993 Fiddlehead She let everybody know she was moving on to True Love and they could eat her dust.

See also: dust, eat