I. drop 1 S1 W2 /drɒp $ drɑːp/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle dropped , present participle dropping )
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: droppian ]
1 . LET SOMETHING FALL [transitive]
a) to stop holding or carrying something so that it falls:
He dropped his briefcase on a chair.
She screamed and dropped the torch.
b) to make something such as a bomb fall from a plane:
U.S. planes began dropping bombs on the city.
Supplies are being dropped for the refugees.
2 . FALL [intransitive] to fall suddenly onto the ground or into something
drop from/off
The apples are beginning to drop from the trees.
Your button has dropped off.
3 . MOVE YOUR BODY DOWN [intransitive always + adverb/preposition, transitive] to lower yourself or part of your body suddenly
drop down/onto/into
He dropped down onto the floor and hid under the table.
She dropped her head back against the cushion.
4 . BECOME LESS [intransitive] to fall to a lower level or amount, especially a much lower level or amount
drop suddenly/sharply/dramatically
The number of deaths on the roads has dropped sharply.
Temperatures drop quite dramatically at night, so bring some warm clothing.
drop to
Their share of the market dropped to 50 percent this year.
5 . REDUCE [transitive] to reduce the level or amount of something:
You might be able to get them to drop the price.
As soon as she saw the police car she dropped her speed.
6 . NOT INCLUDE [transitive] to decide not to include someone or something:
His name was dropped from the list.
drop somebody from a team/side
Taylor was bitterly disappointed to be dropped from the England side.
7 . STOP DOING SOMETHING [transitive] to stop doing something, discussing something, or continuing with something:
The proposal was dropped after opposition from civil liberties groups.
drop charges/drop a case
New evidence was presented to the court and the case was dropped.
drop a subject at school/university (=stop studying it)
Students are allowed to drop history in Year 9.
You can’t expect me to drop everything (=completely stop doing whatever I am doing) whenever you’re in town.
Oh, drop the ‘Senator’ (=stop calling me ‘Senator’) – just call me Gordon.
Some time later, the matter was quietly dropped.
8 . STOP TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING [intransitive and transitive] to stop talking about something
drop the subject
To her relief, Julius dropped the subject.
drop it (=stop talking about a subject)
Just drop it, will you? I don’t want to talk about it any more.
‘What about the money?’ ‘We’ve agreed to let it drop (=we have agreed not to talk about it any more) .’
9 . TAKE SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE ( also drop off ) [transitive] to take someone by car to a place and leave them there, especially on your way to another place:
Just drop me here – I can walk the rest of the way.
drop somebody at something
She dropped Johnny at the school gates at about 8:30.
10 . TAKE SOMETHING SOMEWHERE [transitive] to take something to a place and leave it there
drop something round/in
I’ve got your books – I’ll drop them round to your place later.
11 . VISIT [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] to visit someone you know, usually without arranging a particular time
drop by/round
I just dropped by to see how you were getting on.
The kids drop round and see her from time to time.
drop into
Jan dropped into the office this morning to tell me her news.
drop in (on somebody)
Why don’t you drop in for a drink one evening?
12 . SLOPE DOWNWARDS [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if a path, land etc drops, it goes down suddenly, forming a steep slope
drop down
The cliff dropped down over a hundred feet to the sea below.
drop away
On the left the ground drops away, giving a view over the rooftops.
13 . END A RELATIONSHIP [transitive] informal to suddenly stop having a relationship with someone, especially a romantic relationship:
She dropped him as soon as she found out he had been seeing another woman.
14 . until/till you drop until you are too tired to continue doing something:
We’re going to shop till we drop!
15 . drop a hint to suggest or ask for something in an indirect way, hoping that the person you are talking to will understand what you mean:
He dropped some big hints about what he wanted for his birthday.
16 . drop somebody a line/note informal to write a short letter to someone:
Drop us a line to let us know how you’re getting on.
17 . drop dead
a) informal to die suddenly
b) spoken informal an impolite expression which you say to someone when you are extremely angry with them
18 . sb’s jaw dropped used to say that someone was very surprised
19 . drop your eyes/gaze to stop looking at someone and look down, usually because you feel embarrassed or uncomfortable:
Ben looked at me in horror for a moment and then dropped his gaze.
20 . the wind drops the wind stops:
They waited for the wind to drop.
21 . drop a bombshell informal to suddenly tell someone a shocking piece of news:
Finally she dropped the bombshell. She was pregnant and I was the father.
22 . drop somebody in it informal to say or do something that gets someone else into trouble:
You told her where we went on Friday night! You’ve really dropped me in it now!
23 . drop $50/£2,000 etc [transitive] informal to lose money in a business deal, a game etc:
Phil dropped $200 playing poker yesterday.
24 . drop a catch to fail to catch a ball hit by a ↑ batsman in ↑ cricket
25 . drop a point to lose a point in a sports competition:
Real Madrid dropped a point at home yesterday.
26 . be dropping like flies informal if people are dropping like flies, they are getting ill or dying in large numbers
27 . drop a clanger/brick British English to say something embarrassing in a social situation
28 . drop a stitch to let the wool fall off the needle when you are ↑ knitting
29 . drop anchor to lower a boat’s ↑ anchor to the bottom of the sea, a lake etc so that the boat does not float away
30 . drop acid informal to swallow ↑ LSD (=an illegal drug)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 7)
■ drop + NOUN
▪ drop the charges/a case (=stop the legal process of trying to prove someone is guilty)
Both men have been released and the charges have been dropped.
▪ drop everything (=completely stop everything you are doing)
When my mother was sick, I just dropped everything and flew to be with her in Seattle.
▪ drop the idea
The project was going to be too expensive so the idea was dropped.
▪ drop a plan
The company has dropped its plan to build a hotel on the site.
▪ drop a scheme/program etc
Some banks have dropped their student loan scheme.
▪ drop a subject (=stop studying it at school or university)
Students may choose to drop a subject in their second year.
▪ drop the pretence (=stop pretending)
He has finally dropped the pretence that he’s innnocent.
drop back ( also drop behind ) phrasal verb
to move more slowly than other people so that they get ahead of you:
He started out with the leaders but at the first fence he dropped back.
Ellen dropped behind to tie her shoelace.
drop off phrasal verb
1 . to begin to sleep:
She kept dropping off at her desk.
I must have dropped off to sleep.
2 . drop somebody/something ↔ off to take someone or something to a place by car and leave them there on your way to another place:
I’ll drop you off on my way home.
3 . to fall to a lower level or amount:
The number of graduates going into teaching has dropped off sharply.
drop out phrasal verb
1 . to no longer do an activity or belong to a group:
The group gets smaller as members move away or drop out.
2 . to leave a school or university before your course has finished ⇨ dropout
drop out of
Bill dropped out of college after his first year.
3 . to refuse to take part in ordinary society because you do not agree with its principles ⇨ dropout :
In the 60s, Leary urged kids to ‘Turn on, tune in and drop out.’
II. drop 2 S2 W3 BrE AmE noun
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: dropa ]
1 . LIQUID [countable] a very small amount of liquid that falls in a round shape
drop of
As the first drops of rain began to fall, Michael started to run.
A single drop of blood splashed onto the floor.
A drop of sweat ran down her forehead and into her eye.
⇨ ↑ rain drop , ↑ teardrop
2 . SMALL AMOUNT [usually singular] informal
a) a small amount of liquid that you drink, especially alcohol
drop of
She likes to add a drop of brandy to her tea.
George hasn’t touched a drop (=drunk any alcohol) for years.
b) a small amount of something
drop of
I haven’t got a drop of sympathy for him.
3 . REDUCTION [singular] a reduction in the amount, level, or number of something, especially a large or sudden one SYN fall
drop in
Manufacturers report a big drop in new orders.
a drop in temperature
a sharp/dramatic/marked drop in something
The results showed a sharp drop in profits.
4 . DISTANCE TO GROUND [singular] a distance from a higher point down to the ground or to a lower point:
There was a steep drop on one side of the track.
a 20-metre drop
There was an almost sheer (=vertical) drop to the valley below.
5 . at the drop of a hat immediately and without pausing to think about what you are going to do:
Some of these corporations threaten to sue at the drop of a hat.
6 . DELIVERY [countable] an act of delivering something somewhere, for example by dropping it from a plane SYN delivery :
Air drops (=from a plane) of food aid were made to the region yesterday.
My first drop of the day is usually somewhere in north London.
⇨ ↑ mail drop
7 . lemon/fruit/chocolate etc drop a sweet that tastes of ↑ lemon etc
8 . a drop in the ocean British English , a drop in the bucket American English a very small amount of something compared to what is needed or wanted:
5,000 new schools are to be built, but this is just a drop in the ocean for such a vast country.
9 . eye/ear etc drops a type of medicine that you put in your eye, ear etc, one drop at a time