fall
fall [fall falls fell falling fallen] verb, noun BrE [fɔːl] NAmE [fɔːl]
verb (fellBrE [fel] ; NAmE [fel] fall·enBrE [ˈfɔːlən] ; NAmE [ˈfɔːlən] )
DROP DOWN
1. intransitive to drop down from a higher level to a lower level
• September had come and the leaves were starting to fall.
• They were injured by falling rocks.
•+ adv./prep. Several of the books had fallen onto the floor.
•One of the kids fell into the river.
•The handle had fallen off the drawer.
•He fell 20 metres onto the rocks below.
•The rain was falling steadily.
STOP STANDING
2. intransitive to suddenly stop standing
• She slipped on the ice and fell.
•+ adv./prep. I fell over and cut my knee.
•The house looked as if it was about to fall down.
see also ↑fallen
OF HAIR/MATERIAL
3. intransitive + adv./prep. to hang down
• Her hair fell over her shoulders in a mass of curls.
SLOPE DOWNWARDS
4. intransitive ~ (away/off) to slope downwards
• The land falls away sharply towards the river.
DECREASE
5. intransitive to decrease in amount, number or strength
• Their profits have fallen by 30 per cent.
• Prices continued to fall on the stock market today.
•The temperature fell sharply in the night.
•falling birth rates
•Her voice fell to a whisper.
•+ noun Share prices fell 30p.
Opp: ↑rise
BE DEFEATED
6. intransitive to be defeated or captured
• The coup failed but the government fell shortly afterwards.
•~ to sb Troy finally fell to the Greeks.
DIE IN BATTLE
7. intransitive (literary)to die in battle; to be shot
•a memorial to those who fell in the two world wars
BECOME
8. intransitive to pass into a particular state; to begin to be sth
•+ adj. He had fallen asleep on the sofa.
• The book fell open at a page of illustrations.
•The room had fallen silent.
•She fell ill soon after and did not recover.
•~ into sth I had fallen into conversation with a man on the train.
•The house had fallen into disrepair.
•+ noun She knew she must not fall prey to his charm.
HAPPEN/OCCUR
9. intransitive (literary)to come quickly and suddenly
Syn: ↑descend
•A sudden silence fell.
•Darkness falls quickly in the tropics.
•~ on sb/sth An expectant hush fell on the guests.
10. intransitive + adv./prep. to happen or take place
•My birthday falls on a Monday this year.
11. intransitive + adv./prep. to move in a particular direction or come in a particular position
•My eye fell on (= I suddenly saw) a curious object.
•Which syllable does the stress fall on?
•A shadow fell across her face.
BELONG TO GROUP
12. intransitive + adv./prep. to belong to a particular class, group or area of responsibility
•Out of over 400 staff there are just 7 that fall into this category.
•This case falls outside my jurisdiction.
•This falls under the heading of scientific research.
Rem: Idioms containing fall are at the entries for the nouns and adjectives in the idioms, for example fall by the wayside is at wayside.
Verb forms: 
Word 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’.
Thesaurus:
fall verb
1. I
•He fell onto the rocks below.
drop • • tumble • • plunge • • sink • • topple • • crash •
fall/drop/tumble/sink/crash down
fall/plunge to your death
2. I (usually used with an adverb or preposition)
•70 millimetres of rain fell overnight.
come down • • rain • • pour •
rain falls/comes down/pours
fall/rain heavily/lightly/steadily
Fall, come down or rain? Rain is the most frequent verb and is used with the subject it. Fall and come down are used with a subject such as rain or snow.
3. I
•She slipped and fell on the ice.
fall down • • fall over • • stumble • • trip • • slip •
Fall, fall down or fall over? Fall and fall over are only used about people in this meaning. Fall down can be used about people, buildings or other structures that can stand and then suddenly stop standing.
4. I
•The temperature fell sharply in the night.
drop • • come down • • decline • • diminish • |formal decrease • |especially business sink • • slump • • plunge • • plummet • • tumble •
Opp: rise
fall/drop/come down/decline/diminish/decrease/sink/slump/plunge/plummet/tumble by 100, 25%, a half, etc.
fall/drop/come down/decline/diminish/decrease/sink/slump/plunge/plummet/tumble from 1 500 to 1 000
prices fall/drop/come down/decline/decrease/sink/slump/plunge/plummet/tumble
fall/drop/decline/decrease/slump/plunge dramatically
Fall, drop or decline? All these words can be used about numbers, levels, prices, profits and sales. Use decline to talk about a loss of economic strength in an area:
•The city/industry has declined (in importance).
A person's health or people's support for sth declines. Voices and temperatures fall or drop. Things can fall or decline over a period of time, but drop cannot be used in the progressive tenses:
•Sales have been falling/declining.
✗ Sales have been dropping.
Language Bank:
fall
Describing a decrease
▪ Car crime in Oxford fell significantly ▪ last year.
▪ Car crime fell ▪ by about a quarter over a 12-month period.
▪ The number of stolen vehicles dropped ▪ from 1 013 to 780, a fall of ▪ 26 per cent.
▪ According to this data, 780 vehicles were stolen, 26% down ▪ on the previous year.
▪ There was an 11% drop ▪ in reported thefts from motor vehicles, from 1 871 to 1 737.
▪ These figures show that, as far as car crime is concerned, the main trend is downwards ▪.
Language Banks at ↑expect, ↑illustrate, ↑increase, ↑proportion
Example Bank:
•A tile fell off the roof.
•Demand is likely to fall by some 15%.
•Expenditure on education fell by 10% last year.
•He fell from the fourth floor.
•He fell overboard in heavy seas.
•He stumbled and almost fell.
•Her hands fell limply to her sides.
•Loose bricks were falling down onto the ground.
•One of the children fell over.
•Out of over 400 staff there are just 14 that fall into this category.
•She fell headlong, with a cry of alarm.
•She fell heavily to the ground.
•She lifted her arm, but then let it fall.
•Tears fell freely from her eyes.
•That topic falls outside the scope of this thesis.
•The number of people unemployed has fallen from two million to just over one and a half million.
•The plate fell to the floor.
•The price of coal fell sharply.
•This case falls squarely within the committee's jurisdiction.
•Winter temperatures never fall below 10°C.
•the snow falling on the fields
•70 millimetres of rain fell in just a few hours.
•Falling birth rates could have an impact on future economic growth.
•He fell 23 metres onto the rocks below.
•She slipped and fell on the ice.
Idioms: ↑break somebody's fall ▪ ↑take the fall
Derived: ↑fall about ▪ ↑fall apart ▪ ↑fall away ▪ ↑fall back ▪ ↑fall back on somebody ▪ ↑fall behind ▪ ↑fall behind with something ▪ ↑fall down ▪ ↑fall for somebody ▪ ↑fall for something ▪ ↑fall in ▪ ↑fall in with somebody ▪ ↑fall into something ▪ ↑fall off ▪ ↑fall on somebody ▪ ↑fall out ▪ ↑fall over ▪ ↑fall over somebody ▪ ↑fall over yourself to do something ▪ ↑fall through ▪ ↑fall to somebody ▪ ↑fall to something
noun
ACT OF FALLING
1. countable an act of falling
• I had a bad fall and broke my arm.
• She was killed in a fall from a horse.
OF SNOW/ROCKS
2. countable ~ (of sth) an amount of snow, rocks, etc. that falls or has fallen
•a heavy fall of snow
•a rock fall
WAY STH FALLS/HAPPENS
3. singular ~ of sth the way in which sth falls or happens
•the fall of the dice
•the dark fall of her hair (= the way her hair hangs down)
OF WATER
4. fallsplural (especially in names)a large amount of water falling down from a height
Syn: ↑waterfall
•The falls upstream are full of salmon.
•Niagara Falls
AUTUMN
5. countable (NAmE) = ↑autumn
•in the fall of 2009
•last fall
•fall weather
DECREASE
6. countable ~ (in sth) a decrease in size, number, rate or level
•a steep fall in profits
•a big fall in unemployment
Opp: ↑rise
DEFEAT
7. singular ~ (of sth) a loss of political, economic, etc. power or success; the loss or defeat of a city, country, etc. in war
•the fall of the Roman Empire
•the rise and fall of British industry
•the fall of Berlin
LOSS OF RESPECT
8. singular a situation in which a person, an organization, etc. loses the respect of other people because they have done sth wrong
•the TV preacher's spectacular fall from grace
IN BIBLE
9. the Fallsingular the occasion when Adam and Eve did not obey God and had to leave the Garden of Eden
more at pride comes/goes before a fall at ↑pride n., be riding for a fall at ↑ride v.
Word 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’.
Thesaurus:
fall noun
1. C
•Share prices suffered a fall yesterday.
drop • • decline • • decrease • • downturn • • slump • • reduction •
Opp: rise
a fall/drop/decline/decrease/downturn/slump/reduction in sth
a 20% fall/drop/decline/decrease/reduction
a fall/drop/decline/decrease/reduction of 20%
see a fall/drop/decline/decrease/downturn/reduction
Fall, drop or decline? These words all describe a process that happens, not a deliberate action by sb: We've seen a steady decline in profits this year. Fall and decline can happen over time, but a drop cannot:
•a gradual decline/fall
✗ a gradual drop
2. sing.
•the fall of Rome to the barbarians
downfall • • overthrow •
Opp: rise
bring about/lead to sb's fall/downfall/overthrow
Example Bank:
•He returned to school a month into the fall semester.
•He was hurt in a fall at his home yesterday.
•Luckily a bush broke his fall.
•New England's gorgeous fall foliage
•Share prices suffered a slight fall yesterday.
•She broke her neck in a fall from a horse.
•She took a bad fall while out riding.
•The chances of surviving a fall under a train are almost nil.
•The doctor says she's had a very nasty fall.
•The fall in age at first marriage occurred during the second half of the 18th century.
•The opinion polls show a significant fall in her popularity.
•The trees were on fire with vibrant fall colors.
•This figure represents a fall of 21% on the same period last year.
•This triggered the recent dramatic falls on the Tokyo stock exchange.
•a big fall in house prices
•a book charting the rise and fall of the Habsburg Empire
•a fresh fall of snow
•a large fall in share prices
•a projected fall of 2%
•covered by a light fall of volcanic ash
•the TV preacher's spectacular fall from grace
•the actions that led to his eventual fall from power
•He remained determined to prevent the fall of South Vietnam to the Communists.
•His diary charts his dramatic fall from grace.
•Napoleon's rise and fall
•The economic crisis worsened, bringing about the fall of the government.
•The novel is set in the revolutionary period in France, following the fall of Louis Philippe.
•The scandal undoubtedly contributed to his fall from power.
•the fall of Rome to the barbarians
See also: ↑fall behind on something
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