fall

fall: fall, drop, sink, slump, subside are comparable when they mean to go or to let go downward freely. They are seldom close synonyms, however, because of various specific and essential implications that tend to separate and distinguish them.

Fall, which in the relevant sense is intransitive, suggests a descent by the force of gravity and implies a loss of support opposing gravity; in extended use fall may apply to whatever extends downward or gives an effect of going in a downward direction

{
let a glass fall to the ground and shatter
}

{
the supports gone, the structure fell in a heap
}

{
the roof had fallen in on another speaker— Cerf
}

{
hairfalling over a woman's shoulders
}

{
the birthrate fell over a 6-month period, then rose
}

{
let fall a remark about the weather
}

Drop may suggest a falling drop by drop or bit by bit, but usually it stresses a speed, directness, unexpectedness, or casualness in falling or allowing to fall

{
dropped a coin into a pond
}

{
dropped seeds into holes
}

{
dropping to the ground at the sound of an air-raid warning
}

{
dropping a hint of coming trouble
}

{
income dropped during the slow winter season
}

Sink fundamentally implies a gradual descending motion, especially into something, often to the point of total submersion

{
the ship sank gradually into the placid sea
}

{
the float on the fish line sank a moment, then bobbed furiously
}

{
the thermometer sank to far below zero— Carruthers
}

but in frequent somewhat extended use the stress is so strongly on a slow or gradual falling or descent that the notion of submergence is largely or wholly lost

{
sinking to her knees from exhaustion
}

{
the sun is sinking in the west
}

{
his voice sank to a whisper
}

Slump usually implies a sudden falling or collapsing (as of someone suddenly powerless or suddenly totally enervated)

{
slumping to the ground unconscious
}

{
slumped in his seat
}

{
prices slumped badly in the winter
}

{
when a bird falls asleep, it relaxes and slumps down until its body rests against the perch— J. H. Baker
}

Subside suggests a gradual descent or return to a normal or usual position, action, or condition after an undue rising, expanding, or boiling up; often it can suggest a sinking below a normal or usual level

{
a wind rising, then subsiding
}

{
he lost a quarter of an hour waiting for the flood to subside— Mary Austin
}

{
the bustle subsides and relative calm is resumed— Amer. Guide Series: N. C.
}

{
the child's quick temper subsided into listlessness— Repplier
}

{
after the boom prices subsided to a level far below normal
}

{
their voices subsided to a whisper
}

Analogous words: *descend, dismount, alight: *droop, sag, flag, wilt: ebb, *abate, wane: *recede

Antonyms: rise

Contrasted words: "iift, raise, elevate, hoist: ascend, arise, mount, soar, tower (see RISE)

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Synonyms:

Drop, descend, sink, drop down, Descent, dropping / Pass, come, be transferred, Discharge (of a river), emptying, disemboguement / Be dropped, be uttered carelessly, drop, Autumn, fall of the leaf / Declivity, slope, inclination / Be prostrated, fall down, Tumble, falling / Sink, be lowered, be depressed, Cataract, cascade, waterfall / Decrease, decline, be diminished, become less, die away, Extent of descent, amount of fall / Sin, err, transgress, lapse, trip, trespass, commit a fault, do amiss, go astray, Destruction, death, ruin, overthrow, downfall / Die, perish, come to destruction, Degradation, loss of eminence / Empty, disembogue, flow, be discharged, Apostasy, loss of innocence, lapse, declension, slip, going astray, failure / Happen, befall, come, Diminution, decrease, decline / Become (sick, asleep, in love, etc.), get, Sinking (of the voice), cadence, close

Look at other dictionaries:

Fall — (f[add]l), v. i. [imp. {Fell} (f[e^]l); p. p. {Fallen} (f[add]l n); p. pr. & vb. n. {Falling}.] [AS. feallan; akin to D. vallen, OS. & OHG. fallan, G. fallen, Icel. Falla, Sw. falla, Dan. falde, Lith. pulti, L. fallere to deceive, Gr. sfa llein… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
fall — [fôl] vi. fell, fallen, falling [ME fallen < OE feallan, to fall, akin to Ger fallen < IE base * phol , to fall > Lith púolu, to fall] I to come down by the force of gravity; drop; descend 1. to come down because detached, pushed,… … English World dictionary
Fall — bezeichnet: Absturz (Unfall), ein Sturz aus gewisser Höhe Freier Fall, die durch Gravitation bewirkte Bewegung eines Körpers Fall (Tau), in der Seemannssprache eine Leine zum Hochziehen und Herablassen von Segeln, Ruderblättern oder Schwertern… … Deutsch Wikipedia
fall — ► VERB (past fell; past part. fallen) 1) move rapidly and without control from a higher to a lower level. 2) collapse to the ground. 3) (fall off) become detached and drop to the ground. 4) hang down. 5) (of someone s f … English terms dictionary
Fall — Fall, n. 1. The act of falling; a dropping or descending be the force of gravity; descent; as, a fall from a horse, or from the yard of ship. [1913 Webster] 2. The act of dropping or tumbling from an erect posture; as, he was walking on ice, and… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Fall [1] — Fall, 1) die Bewegung, in welcher alle Körper von geringerer Masse, in Folge der Anziehungskraft der Massen gegen den Mittelpunkt größerer Körper, mit einer der größeren Masse letzterer proportionirten Schnelligkeit getrieben werden, in so fern… … Pierer's Universal-Lexikon
Fall — Fall, v. t. 1. To let fall; to drop. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] For every tear he falls, a Trojan bleeds. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. To sink; to depress; as, to fall the voice. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] 3. To diminish; to lessen or lower. [Obs.] [1913… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Fall — Fall, I Will Follow Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Fall, I Will Follow Álbum de Lacrimas Profundere Publicación 2002 Género(s) Gothic Rock … Wikipedia Español
fall — fall·er; prat·fall; re·fall; crest·fall·en·ly; crest·fall·en·ness; pratt·fall; … English syllables
fall — [n1] descent; lowering abatement, belly flop*, cut, decline, declivity, decrease, diminution, dip, dive, downgrade, downward slope, drop, dwindling, ebb, falling off, header*, incline, lapse, lessening, nose dive*, plummet, plunge, pratfall*,… … New thesaurus

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fall

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