fall

Pronunciation: /fɔːl/

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Definition of fall

verb (past fell /fɛl/; past participle fallen /ˈfɔːl(ə)n/)

[no object, with adverbial]

1move from a higher to a lower level, typically rapidly and without control:bombs could be seen falling from the planes my purse fell out of my bag (as adjective falling)she was injured by a falling tree
(fall off) become detached and drop to the ground:my sunglasses fell off and broke on the pavement
hang down:hair that was allowed to fall to the shoulders
(of land) slope downwards:the land fell away in a steep bank
[no object] (of someone’s eyes or glance) be directed downwards: Albert’s eyes fell, and he blushed
[no object] (of someone’s face) show dismay or disappointment by appearing to droop:her face fell as she thought about her life with George

2(of a person) lose one’s balance and collapse:she fell down at school today
throw oneself to the ground:she fell to her knees and began to weep
(of a tree or structure) collapse to the ground:after the earthquake, part of the city fell down
(fall over) informal (of computer hardware or software) stop working suddenly; crash: the program fell over once when I clicked on the wrong control

3decrease in number, amount, intensity, or quality:imports fell by 12 per cent we’re worried that standards are falling
(of a measuring instrument) show a lower reading:the barometer had fallen a further ten points
(fall away) (in sport) play less well: when he faded the whole team fell away

4be captured or defeated:their mountain strongholds fell to enemy attack
Cricket (of a wicket) be taken by the bowling side: more wickets fell
die in battle:an English leader who had fallen at the hands of the Danes
[no object] (of a government or leader) lose office or be overthrown.
[no object] archaic yield to temptation:it is their husbands' fault if wives do fall

5pass into a specified state, situation, or position:many of the buildings fell into disrepair [with complement]:she fell pregnant
occur or take place:when night fell we crawled back to our lines her birthday fell on May Day
(fall to doing something) begin to do something:he fell to musing about how it had happened
be drawn accidentally into:you must not fall into this common error

6be classified in the way specified:canals fall within the Minister’s brief

noun

1an act of falling or collapsing:his mother had a fall as she alighted from a train
Wrestling a move which pins the opponent’s shoulders on the ground for a count of three.
a downward difference in height between parts of a surface: at the corner of the massif this fall is interrupted by other heights of considerable stature

2a thing which falls or has fallen:in October came the first fall of snow a rock fall
a sudden onset or arrival:the fall of darkness
(usually falls) a waterfall or cascade: we camped upriver from the falls [in names]:Niagara Falls
literary a downward turn in a melody:that strain again, it had a dying fall
the way in which something falls or hangs:the fall of her hair
(falls) the parts or petals of a flower which bend downwards, especially the outer perianth segments of an iris.

3a decrease in size, number, rate, or level:a big fall in unemployment

4a defeat or downfall:the fall of the government
a person’s moral decline.
(the Fall or the Fall of Man) the lapse of humankind into a state of sin, ascribed in traditional Jewish and Christian theology to the disobedience of Adam and Eve as described in Genesis.

5 (also Fall) North American autumn: that fall Roosevelt was elected to his first term

Phrases

be riding (or heading) for a fall: informal be acting in a reckless way that is likely to end in trouble or disaster: with your present attitude, you’re riding for a fall
fall between two stools: see stool.
fall foul (or North American afoul) of: come into conflict with:one of his songs has fallen foul of censorship regulations
fall in (or into) line: conform with others: she defiantly pledges not to fall into line with the masses
[with reference to military formation]
fall in (or out of) love (with someone): see love.
fall into place: (of a series of events or facts) begin to make sense:once he knew what to look for, the theory fell quickly into place
fall on stony ground: see stony.
fall over oneself to do something: informal be excessively eager to do something:critics fell over themselves to compliment him
fall prey to: see prey.
fall short (of): (of a missile) fail to reach its target.; be deficient or inadequate:the total vote fell short of the required two-thirds majority
fall to pieces: see fall apart below.
fall victim to: see victim.
take the fall: North American informal incur blame or punishment in the place of another person: he kept his mouth shut and let McFarlane take the fall

Phrasal Verbs

fall about: British informal laugh uncontrollably: audiences used to fall about when he shrugged his shoulders
fall apart (or to pieces): break up, come apart, or disintegrate:their marriage is likely to fall apart; (of a person) lose one’s capacity to cope:Angie fell to pieces because she had lost everything
fall back: move or turn back; retreat: the enemy fell back into a defensive position
fall back on: have recourse to when in difficulty:they normally fell back on one of three arguments
fall behind: fail to keep up with one’s competitors: Britain has fallen behind in the space business; fail to meet a commitment to make a regular payment:borrowers falling behind with their mortgage repayments
fall down: be inadequate or unsuccessful; fail:the deal fell down because there were a lot of unanswered questions
fall for
fall in: take one’s place in a military formation:the soldiers fell in by the side of the road
fall in with
fall on (or upon)
fall out
fall through: come to nothing; fail:the project fell through due to lack of money
fall to: (of a task) become the duty or responsibility of:it fell to me to write to Shephard; (of property) revert to the ownership of: land unclaimed after due notice given falls to the lord of the manor

Origin:

Old English fallan, feallan, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vallen and German fallen; the noun is partly from the verb, partly from Old Norse fall 'downfall, sin'

fall in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of fall in the US English dictionary

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Other

verb (past fell /fɛl/; past participle fallen /ˈfɔːl(ə)n/)

noun

Phrases

be riding (or heading) for a fall

fall between two stools

fall foul (or North American afoul) of

fall in (or into) line

fall in (or out of) love (with someone)

fall into place

fall on stony ground

fall over oneself to do something

fall prey to

fall short (of)

fall to pieces

fall victim to

take the fall

Phrasal Verbs

fall about

fall apart (or to pieces)

fall back

fall back on

fall behind

fall down

fall for

fall in

fall in with

fall on (or upon)

fall out

fall through

fall to

Origin:

fall in other Oxford dictionaries

Reference to fall in Language Resources

Nearby words

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