fall
1 falling
2 causing people and things to fall
3 not falling
see also STAND
1 falling
- to come or go down towards the ground: fall*, drop; an act of falling: fall
He fell off a ladder. ◎ We collected some of the peaches that had dropped from the tree. ◎ George has had another bad fall while climbing in the Alps.
- the amount of sth that falls or the distance that sth falls: fall
a heavy fall of snow ◎ a fall of three thousand feet
※ ways that people fall
- to suddenly stop standing: fall* (down/over)
The boy slipped and fell over on the ice.
- to fall suddenly in a heavy way, without control: tumble, have a tumble
She had a nasty tumble from her horse.
- to hit your foot against sth when you are walking, and fall or nearly fall: trip over/on sth, trip over, stumble (over sth)
I tripped over someone's bag that was on the floor. ◎ A hole in the ground made the horse stumble.
- to fall down and perhaps become unconscious: collapse
The winner collapsed at the end of the race.
- to fall from sth: fall* off (sth), come* off (sth)
What happened? Did you fall off? ◎ Mary came off her bike and broke her leg.
- to fall from an enclosed place: fall* out (of sth)
Diane leaned too far out of the window and nearly fell out.
- to fall over the side of a ship: fall* overboard
- to fall, dive, jump, etc suddenly and with force into sth: plunge (into sth)
A woman plunged to her death from the cliffs at Beachy Head yesterday.
- with your head before the rest of your body: headlong (adjective, adverb)
He fell headlong into the crowd below.
- to slide accidentally, lose your balance and fall or nearly fall: slip
Jerry slipped on the rocks and fell into the sea.
※ ways that things fall
- (used about rain, snow, etc) to fall from the sky: fall*, come* down
The rain was coming down in torrents.
- (used about a liquid) to fall in small drops: drip; the sound of water dripping: drip
Water was dripping through the roof. ◎ the steady drip of water from the tap
- a small amount of water that drips: drip
Drips of water fell from the leaves of the trees.
- to drop from an upright position: fall* over
There were too many books on the bookcase; not surprisingly, it fell over.
- to fall down or inwards suddenly: fall* down, collapse, come* down; noun: collapse
The fence collapsed when Harry sat on it. ◎ The bridge came down in the floods. ◎ The collapse of the stand caused many casualties.
- to fall inwards: cave in
The roof of the tunnel had caved in and we could go no further.
- to slide out of the correct position or out of sb's hand: slip
The top book slipped off the pile and fell on the floor.
2 causing people and things to fall
- to make or let sb/sth fall: drop sb/sth
The planes dropped food and medicine. ◎ That vase is very expensive. Whatever you do, don't drop it!
- to cause sb to fall or nearly fall over: trip sb up
Bill stuck his foot out and tripped David up.
- to cause sb/sth to fall over by pushing them/it: push sb/sth over
He pushed her over and ran towards the door.
- to cause sb/sth to fall over: knock sb/sth over
Be careful not to knock the drinks over.
- to cause sb to fall to the ground: knock sb down
She was knocked down by a cyclist.
- to cause sth to fall or turn over: tip sth (over/up)
The baby leaned out of his pushchair and tipped it over.
- (in sport) to cause an opposing player to fall down: bring* sb down
Waddle was brought down in the penalty area.
- when the wind makes sb/sth fall, it blows* sb/sth down/off/over; sth that falls because of the wind blows* down/off/over
The wind blew my hat off. ◎ The fence blew down in the storm.
- to cause sth to fall by cutting it: cut* sth down, chop sth down
We cut the tree down/cut down the tree.
※ destroying a building BUILD
- the natural force that causes things to fall to the ground: gravity (noun U)
the force of gravity
3 not falling
- a thing that does not fall down stays up
Those shelves won't stay up long if you don't use big enough screws.
- something is not likely to fall if it is firm, steady; opposite: unsteady
It seems quite steady - I don't think it will fall.
- to make yourself or sth steady: steady yourself/sth
I thought I was going to fall, so I steadied myself by putting my hand out.
- to remain steady and upright when you might expect to fall: keep* your balance; opposite: lose* your balance
The bridge wobbled dangerously but Henry managed to keep his balance and he didn't fall.
- to fall over or nearly fall over because you cannot stand steadily: overbalance
Peter leaned forward too far and overbalanced.
- to prevent sth from falling: hold*/keep* sth up
You'll need a belt to hold your trousers up.
- to put an object under or behind sth to give it support so that it will not fall: prop sth up; an object that you use to prop sth up: prop
Can you prop the table up with something? It's very unsteady. ◎ What can we use as a prop to hold the bookcase up?
※ MORE ...
- having the feeling that everything is going round and that you are going to fall: dizzy; a dizzy feeling: dizziness (noun U)
I often feel dizzy if I stand up too quickly.
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