Fall | Mean of fall in English Dictionary

/ˈfɑːl/

• Verb
• to come or go down quickly from a high place or position
1. An apple fell from the tree.
2. A vase fell off the shelf.
3. Rain fell from the sky.
4. the sound of the falling rain
• to come or go down suddenly from a standing position
1. She slipped and fell on the ice.
2. He fell flat on his face.
3. She was afraid that I would trip and fall.
4. He fell down the stairs.
5. One of the sailors had fallen overboard.
6. a fallen tree
7. She fell down and hurt herself.
8. The tree fell over during the storm.
• to let yourself come or go down to a lower position
1. He fell [=dropped, sank] to his knees and asked for forgiveness.
2. He fell back/forward onto the bed.

• to come down at a particular place after moving through the air
1. The shot fell a great distance from its target.
2. A ray of light fell on the table.
3. music falling on the ear
• to slope downward
1. The ground falls away to the east.
2. The sides of the ridge fall away steeply.
• to hang down
1. Her hair fell loosely over her shoulders.
• to become lower
1. The tide rose and fell.
2. The temperature fell after dark.
3. His heart rate fell (off) dramatically.
4. The value of the stock has fallen drastically.
• to become less
1. Participation in the group has fallen. [=declined]
2. Participation in the group has fallen off.
3. Factory production has fallen off.
• to lose value
1. Stocks fell several points in early trading today.
2. The market is continuing to fall.
• to become less loud
1. His voice fell (to a whisper).
2. The music rose and fell.
• to become lowered
1. Her eyes fell. [=she looked down]
• to begin to look ashamed or disappointed
1. His face fell [=he looked disappointed] when he heard the news.
• to arrive or begin
1. Darkness falls early in the winter.
2. Night has fallen.
• to be wounded or killed in battle
1. Many men fell on the battlefield that day.
• to be captured or defeated
1. The fortress fell on the third day of the siege.
• to experience ruin or failure
1. A great civilization fell in less than a century.
2. a fallen [=disgraced] leader
3. We will stand or fall together.
4. a politician who has fallen from power
5. The coalition government fell after only six months in office.
• to happen at a specified time
1. Christmas falls on a Friday this year.
2. The worst weather of the year fell during his vacation.
• to have a specified proper place
1. The accent falls on the second syllable.
2. The comma falls inside the quotation mark.
• to belong in a particular category or range
1. This word falls within the class of verbs.
2. Her political views fall somewhere between liberal and conservative.
3. His creative output falls into three distinct categories.
• to start doing something in a very active and energetic way
1. She came in and fell immediately to work.
• to be very eager or too eager
1. Fans were falling over themselves trying to meet the basketball star.
2. Reviewers are falling all over themselves to praise her latest novel.
• to break into parts in usually a sudden and unexpected way
1. The pie was falling apart as I tried to serve it.
2. I feel as if my family is falling apart.
3. My old car is falling apart.
4. The house was falling apart when we bought it.
• to become unable to live in a normal way because you are experiencing a lot of confusion or emotional pain
1. She began to fall apart when her son was imprisoned.
• to become gradually less
1. The sound of the parade fell away in the distance.
• to move back away from something dangerous or threatening
1. The crowd fell back when the police arrived.
2. The guerrillas fell back across the border after a brief battle with the army.
• to use (something) for help or protection when you are in a bad situation
1. When her health insurance was canceled she had nothing to fall back on.
2. They had to fall back on their emergency supplies when the snow storm blocked the road to town.
• to fail to move or go forward as quickly as others
1. We had to stop several times so that the slower hikers wouldn't fall (too far) behind.
• to fail to do something as quickly as planned or required
1. We've been falling further behind with our work.
2. I am falling behind on my homework.
3. We fell behind on our car payments.
• to do a job badly
1. The people who are supposed to be keeping the city clean have been falling down on the job.
• to produce no response or result
1. All of his jokes fell flat. [=no one laughed at his jokes]
• to feel a strong attraction for (someone)
1. He fell for her the moment he saw her.
2. He fell for her hard. = He fell hard for her. = He fell for her like a ton of bricks. [=he became deeply in love with her]
• to be fooled by (something, such as a trick)
1. I can't believe you fell for that old trick.
• to break apart and fall down in an inward direction
1. The roof fell in.
• to take your place in a military formation
1. The troops were ordered to fall in.
• to start to do what you are told or required to do
1. Several of the older companies have refused to fall in line (with the new regulations).
2. It was weeks before the new prisoner fell into line.
• to be caught in (a trap)
1. We fell into a trap.
• to begin to do or experience (something) or to be affected by (something) without wanting or trying to
1. He fell deeply into debt.
2. She fell into her career almost accidentally.
3. She fell into the habit of going out for ice cream every night.
• to fit together
1. The pieces of the puzzle/mystery are finally starting to fall into place.
• to come to be held or possessed by (someone)
1. Officials are concerned that the stolen weapons may fall into the hands of terrorists. [=that terrorists may get/obtain the stolen weapons]
• to come to be held or possessed by the wrong person or group
1. There could be a disaster if the weapons fell into the wrong hands.
• to begin to spend time with (someone)
1. Their daughter fell in with a bad crowd.
• to accept and act in agreement with (something)
1. They readily fell in with our plans.
• to stop being attached to something
1. The handle was so loose that it almost fell off.
• to begin to experience (something)
1. We fell on hard times after I lost my job.
2. The company fell upon some unexpected competition.
• to notice (something) especially without wanting or trying to
1. Her eyes/glance fell on the letter on his desk.
• to attack (someone) suddenly
1. They fell on the enemy soldiers and killed every one of them.
• to stop being attached to the body
1. The cancer treatments made her hair fall out.
• to have an argument
1. They fell out [=fought, argued] over money.
2. He had fallen out [=quarreled] with his neighbor.
• to leave your place in a military formation
1. The soldiers were ordered to fall out.
• to fail to be as good or successful as expected or hoped for
1. In comparison to her previous novel, this one falls short. [=this one is not as good]
2. Her current book falls short of her previous novel.
3. The cruise fell short of our expectations. [=the cruise was not as good as we expected it to be]
• to fail to reach a goal
1. Their efforts fell short.
2. Their efforts fell (far) short of (achieving) their goal.
• to fail or stop in a sudden or final way
1. Contract negotiations have fallen through.
2. Our vacation plans have fallen through.
• to be influenced or affected by (something)
1. He fell under her influence.
2. fall under a spell
3. He has fallen under suspicion. [=people have begun to suspect him of doing something]
• Noun
• the act of falling: such as
• the act of coming or going down from a high position or from a standing position
1. a fall from a horse
2. She's had/suffered several bad falls in recent years.
3. a fall of three feet
4. He slipped on the ice and hurt his hand when he tried to break his fall. [=to stop himself from falling]
• the act of becoming lower
1. the rise and fall of the tide
• the season between summer and winter
1. She went off to college in the fall.
2. an unusually warm fall
3. in early/late fall
4. Several weeks of fall remain before winter begins.
5. When fall came he planted grass.
6. our fall catalog
7. a new fall coat
8. fall colors/foliage
9. the fall harvest
• a decrease in the size, amount, degree, activity, or value of something
1. a fall in the price of oil
• loss of power or greatness
1. the rise and fall [=collapse] of an empire
• the surrender or capture of a place that is being attacked
1. the fall of Troy
2. The fall of the fort caused the local civilians to flee.
• loss of innocence or goodness
1. a fall from virtue
• the event in the Bible when Adam and Eve are forced to leave the Garden of Eden because they have sinned against God
1. after the Fall
• an area on a river or stream where water runs steeply downward
1. Bears hunted for fish in the rocky falls. [=waterfall]
2. Niagara Falls