I. ˈfȯl verb
( fell ˈfel ; fall·en ˈfȯlən also in poetry & sometimes +V in prose -ln ; also dialect fell ; falling ; falls )
Etymology: Middle English fallen, from Old English feallan; akin to Old Frisian & Old Norse falla to fall, Old Saxon & Old High German fallan, and perhaps to Lithuanian pulti to fall, Old Prussian au- pallai he finds, Armenian p'ul fall, plunge
intransitive verb
1.
a.
(1) : to descend by the force of gravity when freed from suspension or support : drop
the rain falls
ripe fruit falling off a tree
(2) : to pass downward in a certain direction : drop in a guided descent
the water falls over the ledge
the mercury falls in the thermometer
the lash fell on his shoulders
(3) : to hang freely : extend downward
her hair falls loosely
his cloak falls from his shoulders
(4) : to let oneself down usually swiftly and suddenly to a sitting, reclining, or kneeling position
she fell on the window seat by the coat closet and began to sob — Louis Auchincloss
I was her slave; I fell at her feet — A.W.Long
sometimes : to leap from a great height
the column was popular with suicides, some of whom fell to their death before the top was enclosed in a cage — Sydney (Australia) Bulletin
b.
(1) : to become born — now usually used of lambs
(2) : to drop to a lower degree
the temperature fell
or level
blood pressure fell to 140 systolic
(3) : to decrease in volume of sound : drop in pitch
his voice fell
the music rose and fell
(4) : issue — used of speech
the excellent advice that fell from his lips
(5) : to come or come to pass as if by falling
an ominous stillness fell upon the room
night fell upon the village
a heavy vengeance fell upon the rebels
(6) : to become lowered — used of a glance or the eyes
2.
a. : to drop suddenly and involuntarily
fall down on the ice
slipped and fell heavily to the ground
b.
(1) : to enter as if blindly or unawares into a dangerous or undesirable state or situation : stumble , stray — used with in or into
fell into the enemy ambush
falling into the moral snares of a great city
fell into grave doctrinal errors
the novel falls into a cloying sentimentality
(2) of a structure : to collapse especially in fragments
many houses fell as a result of the earthquake
the building fell of its own weight
(3) : to drop to the ground wounded or dead
men were falling all about him under the enemy fire
especially : to die in battle
the fallen included numerous officers
fell in the first skirmish of the war
(4) : to suffer destruction, capture, or total military defeat : collapse
scholars still argue about why the Roman Empire fell
the city fell after a siege of many months
(5) : to lose office especially as a result of an adverse parliamentary vote — used of a government or ministry
the coalition government fell after only 6 months in office
(6) : to suffer ruin, defeat, or failure : fail utterly
we will stand or fall together
— used chiefly of projects or undertakings and in the phrase fall through
your paper's falling through for no money and you want me to give you some? — Josephine Johnson
I do not remember why the deal fell through — A.L.Guérard
(7) : lapse , expire : perish , disappear
the conversation fell for a few minutes — Arnold Bennett
his anger suddenly fell
— often used with away
if you have some other witness … this difficulty will fall away — Farmer's Weekly (South Africa)
(8) card games : to become played — used of a card whose holder must legally though unwillingly play it
(9) cricket , of a wicket : to become lost by the dismissal of a batsman
the first wicket fell with 50 runs on the board
c. : to yield to temptation : commit an immoral act
if falling were all that ever happened to a good man, all his days would he a simple matter of striving and repentance — Owen Wister
especially : to lose one's chastity
3.
a.
(1) of a river : to flow down : debouch , empty — used with into
the rivers that fall into the sea
(2) : to move or extend in a generally downward direction
the land falls to a river
— often used with away
the ridge falls away quickly where it approaches the sea — Norman Cousins
the ground falling away from the highest point — Osbert Lancaster
b.
(1) : to cease to be violent : subside , abate
the flames rose and fell
the wind fell
: ebb
the falling tide
(2) : to decline in quality, character, activity, or quantity
the party's representation in the legislature fell from seven seats to six
after his book on the circulation of the blood came out … he fell mightily in his practice — John Aubrey
greater increases would merely influence traffic to fall more sharply — Collier's Year Book
how low can a man fall
— often used with off or away
the tourist trade fell off markedly in January — R.F.Warner
the play falls off toward the end
his work fell off badly
subscriptions fell away — C.L.R.James
the poem does not fall away from its opening line — Oscar Cargill
(3) : to lose physical tone, condition, or weight : become wasted — usually used with off or away
the cattle have fallen off badly in the drouth
you'd scarcely believe anybody could fall off so rapidly — Ellen Glasgow
she's fallen away terribly
(4) : to assume a look of shame, disappointment, or dejection — used of the face
his face fell
(5) : to decline in financial value or price : suffer a decline in prices
stocks fell several points
the market is falling
c. : to make a hostile move or attack physically or verbally — now used with on or upon
fell upon the enemy and routed him
the opposition speakers fell clamorously on the tottering government
4.
a.
(1) : to come or occur at a certain time : arrive
prevent the harvest seasons from coming in time to fall outside of their proper agricultural seasons — T.H.Gaster
the beginnings of his career fell at the period … when the vogue of field games … was beginning — E.P.Tanner
(2) : to come by chance : happen to come
it fell into my mind to write you a letter
hurried me frequently into intrigues with low women that fell in my way — Benjamin Franklin
b.
(1) : to come or pass by lot, assignment, inheritance, or as a burden or duty : devolve
the estate fell to his brother
the lot fell on him
it fell to him to break the news
(2) dialect Britain : to have need or occasion : become obliged or due — used with to
c. archaic : to come or be due in the course of events — followed by to be and usually a participle
d.
(1) : to lie in a certain position
the point falls to the right of a given line
: have the proper place or station
the accent falls on the second syllable
(2) : to come within the limits, scope, or jurisdiction of something : have a definite position in a classificatory system or arrangement — often used with into, within, or under
this word falls into the class of verbs
obviously fell within the Soviet sphere of influence — Max Ascoli
falls within the jurisdiction of this city
species fall under genera
(3) : to divide naturally — usually used with into
his creative output falls into three distinct classes
the area falls into a number of physiographic regions
(4) : to break up : separate
they fell into two factions — R.A.Billington
under the enemy thrust, the division fell to pieces
5.
a. : to pass usually somewhat suddenly and passively into a certain state of body or mind or a new condition or relation : become
fell at musing — Hugh McCrae
I fell silent
fell prey to dangerous diseases
the brittle dish fell apart
the tax falls due this month
fell heir to the estate
fell in love
— often used with into
fell into a heavy slumber
ran a street or two … and then fell into a walk — Arthur Morrison
the word fell into disuse
b. : to come by chance into close or friendly dealings with a particular individual or group : have a chance encounter
a college he fell into a congenial crowd of artistic and literary young men
— often used in the phrases fall among or fall in with
a bluff and simple country gentleman who had inadvertently fallen among politicians — C.H.Driver
fell in with a Russian gentleman and his daughter — Norman Douglas
he thought he was close to land when he fell in with a ship — Walter Hayward
c. : to set about usually heartily or actively : begin — often used with an infinitive of action
fell to work
or a verbal noun after the prefix a-
fell a-laughing
6. archaic
a. : to revert to a feudal superior — used of a benefice
b. : to become vacant — used of an office
7. : to have a certain direction or point of incidence : strike , impinge
a ray of light fell on the table
music falling on the ear
the shot fell a great distance from its target
8.
a. : to form an ardent and usually sudden attachment : become passionately or blindly fond or enamored
one look at the girl and he fell — but hard
— usually used with for
have you fallen for that young female grasshopper … at your age — Sinclair Lewis
he has fallen for the ravishing widow — C.J.Rolo
b. : to become victim of a hoax or deception : become gulled or deceived
they just don't fall any more — Reed Whittemore
— usually used with for
a reform movement that has fallen for a panacea — F.L.Allen
9. slang : to undergo arrest
he fell twice, for theft and burglary — Wallace Beene
transitive verb
1. archaic : to let drop or bring down (as tears or a weapon)
2. dialect England : to receive as one's share : get
3. : fell vt 1
Synonyms:
fall , drop , sink , slump , and subside can mean in common to go or let go downward freely. fall , intransitive, suggests a descent by the force of gravity, always implying a loss of support opposing gravity in extension applying to anything extending downward or going figuratively in a downward direction
let a glass fall to the ground and shatter
the supports gone, the structure fell in a heap
the roof had fallen in on another speaker — Bennett Cerf
hair falling over a woman's shoulders
the birthrate fell over a 6-month period, then rose
let fall a remark about the weather
drop usually stresses a speed, directness, unexpectedness, or casualness in falling or allowing to fall
dropped a coin into a pond
dropped seeds into holes
dropping to the ground at the sound of an air-raid warning
dropping a hint of coming trouble
income figures dropped during the slow winter season
sink implies a gradual descending motion, especially into something, often to the point of total submersion
the ship sank gradually into the placid sea
the float on the fish line sank a moment, then bobbed furiously
the thermometer sank to far below zero — Douglas Carruthers
sinking to her knees from exhaustion
slump now implies a falling or collapsing as of someone suddenly powerless or suddenly totally enervated
slumping to the ground, unconscious
slumped in his seat
prices slumped badly in the winter
when a bird falls asleep, it relaxes and slumps down until its body rests against the perch — J.H.Baker
subside suggests a gradual descent or return to a normal or usual position, action, or condition after an undue rising, expanding, boiling up; often it can suggest a sinking below a normal or usual level
a wind rising then subsiding
he lost a quarter of an hour waiting for the flood to subside — Mary Austin
the bustle subsides and relative calm is resumed — American Guide Series: North Carolina
the child's quick temper subsided into listlessness — Agnes Repplier
after the boom prices subsided to a level far below normal
•
- fall a cropper
- fall by the wayside
- fall down
- fall flat
- fall foul
- fall from
- fall from grace
- fall home
- fall into line
- fall off the roof
- fall on
- fall on one's face
- fall over oneself
- fall short
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English feall; akin to Old Frisian, Old Saxon, & Old High German fal fall, Old Norse fall, deverbatives from the root of English fall (I)
1.
a.
(1) : the act of dropping or descending by the force of gravity
the fall of a stone
a fall from a horse
the leading cause of home deaths continued to be falls — Americana Annual
a fall on the ice
(2) : a guided descent or drop through the air
the fall of an ax
the fall of a man's foot
specifically : a descent to the floor in modern-dance technique that can be effected in a variety of ways and that resolves into a recovery or rise
(3) : a position in which a wrestler's scapular area is held in contact with the mat for a given period of time ; also : the act of putting an opponent in this position for the prescribed time
b.
(1) : a falling out, off, or away : dropping , shedding
the fall of leaves
a fall of snow
(2) : the season when leaves fall from trees : autumn
(3) : the approach or onset especially of night or darkness
he came along the road in the chill fall of the evening — Padraic Colum
c.
(1) : a thing or quantity that falls or has fallen
examined the fall of earth at the mouth of the tunnel — G.A.Wagner
a freak 20-inch fall of rain
specifically : one or more meteorites or their fragments that have fallen together at one place and time
(2) : birth or production by birth ; also : something which is so produced
a good fall of lambs
d. : something that hangs down
pushed back the fall of hair from her forehead — Berton Roueché
as
(1) : a costume decoration of lace or thin fabric arranged to hang loosely and gracefully especially from the back edge of a bonnet
(2) : a very wide collar of fine fabric and lace worn in the 17th century especially by Cavaliers
(3) : the part of a turned-over collar from the crease to the outer edge — compare stand
(4) : a wide front flap on trousers (as those worn by sailors)
(5) : the freely hanging lower edge of the skirt of a coat — often used in plural
would have done it … had I not taken him by the falls of his skirt — Hugh McCrae
(6) : one of the three outer and often drooping segments of the flower of an iris — usually used in plural
(7) : long hair overhanging the face of certain terriers
(8) : a hoisting-tackle rope or chain ; especially : the part of it to which the power is applied
(9) : boat fall
e. : the manner in which something hangs down
the fall of a woman's hair
2.
a. : loss of greatness, power, status, influence, or dominion : collapse , downfall
the fall of the Roman Empire
the rise and fall of business firms — Economic Journal
specifically : loss of office by a government or ministry especially as a result of an adverse parliamentary vote
the fall of a government on a vote of confidence
b. : the surrender or capture of a besieged fortress or town
the fall of Troy
c.
(1) : lapse or departure from innocence or goodness : spiritual ruin
fall from virtue
— used with the and often cap. in reference to the fall of man reported in Gen 3
(2) : loss of a woman's chastity
(3) : the cause of falling from virtue, grace, or power
his stubbornness was his fall
3.
a. : the descent of land or a hill : downward direction : slope , declivity
the well-remembered fall of the land, dropping away to the old rice fields — Hamilton Basso
b. : precipitous descent of water : cascade , cataract , waterfall
the first fall is about 60 feet high — American Guide Series: Tennessee
— usually plural but often sing. in constr.
the falls of Niagara
the upper falls has a sheer plunge of 20 feet — Journal of Geology
c.
(1) : a musical cadence
(2) : double appoggiatura
d. : a falling-pitch intonation in speech
4. : diminution or decrease in size, quantity, or degree : decline
the persistently steep fall in immigration — Peter Scott
it was a compensation for a fall in excitement and satisfaction in their … lives — W.D.Howells
the main fall in the average family size … had already taken place — Roy Lewis & Angus Maude
the steady fall in purchasing power
specifically : diminution or decrease in price or value
recent heavy falls in the stock market
a fall of rents
5.
a. : the distance or extent to which something falls or slopes : the difference between levels
a cultivated field … with a fall of five feet in a hundred feet — J.B.Robson
a fall of five points in the price of a stock
the Mississippi has a fall of 620 feet between Minnesota and the Gulf — American Guide Series: Minnesota
b. : inclination , pitch
a flat roof with a barely perceptible fall
adjust the fall of the gutter so the water would run along it faster
6.
a. : the act of felling
b. : the quantity of trees cut down
7. Scotland : something that befalls one : fortune , lot
may good fortune be your fall
8. slang : arrest
served time on narcotics and prostitution falls — Jack Lait & Lee Mortimer
•
- take a fall out of
III. adjective
: of fall or autumn : being such as occurs, matures, is done, or is suited for use or wear in the fall
bought a fall coat
brisk fall weather