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fall definition

fall (fôl)

intransitive verb fell, fallen fall′en, falling fall′·ing

  1. to come down because detached, pushed, dropped, etc.; move down and land forcibly apples fall from the tree to come down suddenly from a standing or sitting position; tumble; topple; become prostrate to be wounded or killed in battle to come down in ruins; collapse the building fell to hang down hair falling about her shoulders
  2. to take a downward direction land falling away to the sea to become lower in amount, number, degree, intensity, value, etc.; drop; abate prices fell to lose power; be overthrown the government has fallen to lose status, reputation, dignity, etc. to yield to temptation; do wrong; sin; specif. in earlier use (esp. of women), to lose chastity to be captured or conquered to take on a look of disappointment or dejection his face fell to become lower in pitch or volume her voice fell
  3. to take place; occur the meeting fell on a Friday to come by lot, distribution, inheritance, etc. the estate falls to the son to pass into a specified condition; become to fall ill, to fall in love to come at a specified place the accent falls on the third syllable to be directed by chance his eye fell on a misspelled word to be spoken in an involuntary way the news fell from his lips to be born: said of animals to be divided (into) to fall into two classes

Etymology: ME fallen < OE feallan, to fall, akin to Ger fallen < IE base *phol-, to fall > Lith púolu, to fall

transitive verb

Dialectal to fell (a tree, etc.)

noun

  1. a dropping; descending; coming down
  2. a coming down suddenly from a standing or sitting position
  3. a hanging down, or a part hanging down
  4. a downward direction or slope
  5. a becoming lower or less; reduction in value, price, etc.
  6. a lowering of the voice in pitch or volume
  7. a capture; overthrow; ruin
  8. a loss of status, reputation, etc.
  9. a yielding to temptation; wrongdoing; moral lapse
    1. a birth: said of animals
    2. the number of animals born at one birth; litter
    1. something that has fallen a fall of leaves
    2. a felling of trees, or timber felled at one time
  12. that season of the year in which many trees lose their leaves; autumn: in the North Temperate Zone, generally regarded as including the months of September, October, and November
  13. the amount of what has fallen a six-inch fall of snow
  14. the distance that something falls
  15. water falling over a cliff, etc.; cascade
  16. a broad, turned-down ruff or collar worn in the 17th cent.
    1. Now Rare a kind of veil hanging from the back of a woman's hat
    2. lace, ruffles, or other trimming on a dress, usually hanging from the collar
  18. a long tress of hair, often synthetic, used by a woman to fill out her coiffure
  19. Mech. the loose end of the rope, cable, etc. used in a block and tackle
  20. Naut.
    1. either of the lines used to lower or hoist a boat at the davits
    2. in a tackle (), the part of a rope between the free end and a pulley or between pulleys
  21. Wrestling
    1. the act of holding an opponent down so that both shoulders touch the mat for a specified time period; pin
    2. a bout or a division of a match

Etymology: < the v.

adjective

of, in, for, or characteristic of the fall season
fall Idioms

fall (all) over oneself

☆
Informal to behave in too eager or zealous a manner

fall among

to come among by chance

fall apart

to crumble, disintegrate, disunite, etc.

fall away

  1. to take away friendship, support, etc.; desert
  2. to become less in size, strength, etc.; specif., to grow thin and weak

fall back

to withdraw; give way; retreat

fall back on

or fall back upon
  1. to turn, or return, to for security or help
  2. to retreat to

fall behind

  1. to be outdistanced; drop behind
  2. to fail to pay on time; be in arrears

fall down on

☆
Slang to fail or be unsuccessful in (a job, etc.)

fall for

☆ Informal
  1. to fall in love with; become infatuated with
  2. to be tricked or deceived by

fall foul of

or fall afoul of
  1. to collide with or become entangled with
  2. to get into trouble or conflict with

fall in

  1. to collapse inward; cave in
  2. to agree
  3. Mil. to line up in proper formation

fall in with

  1. to meet by chance
  2. to meet and join
  3. to agree with; comply with

fall off

  1. to become smaller, less, lighter, etc.
  2. to become worse; decline
  3. Naut. to swing away from the heading, often, specif., to leeward

fall on

or fall upon
  1. to attack
  2. to be the duty of

fall out

  1. to have a disagreement; quarrel
  2. to happen; result
  3. Mil. to leave one's place in a formation

fall short

  1. to be lacking
  2. to fail to meet a standard or goal: with of

fall through

to come to nothing; fail

fall to

to begin; start; specif.,
  1. to start attacking
  2. to start eating

fall under

  1. to come under (an influence, etc.)
  2. to be listed or classified as

ride for a fall

to behave in a manner likely to cause one trouble or injury

the Fall (of Man)

Christian Theol. Adam's sin of yielding to temptation in eating the forbidden fruit, and his subsequent loss of grace

the fall of the cards

the chance distribution of cards in a given deal

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