- 1 [countable] an act of falling I had a bad fall and broke my arm. She was killed in a fall from a horse. Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivebad, nasty, terrible, … verb + fallhave, suffer, take, … prepositionin a/the fall, fall from See full entry of snow/rocks
- 2 [countable] fall (of something) an amount of snow, rocks, etc. that falls or has fallen a heavy fall of snow a rock fall Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveheavy, light, fresh, … prepositionfall of See full entry See related entries: Snow and ice way something falls/happens
- 3[singular] fall of something the way in which something falls or happens the fall of the dice the dark fall of her hair (= the way her hair hangs down) of water
- 4falls [plural] (especially in names) a large amount of water falling down from a height synonym waterfall The falls upstream are full of salmon. Niagara Falls autumn
- 5 [countable] (North American English) = autumn in the fall of 2009 last fall fall weather Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivelast, this past, the following, … fall + nounweather, color, foliage, … See full entry decrease
- 6 [countable] fall (in something) a decrease in size, number, rate or level a steep fall in profits a big fall in unemployment Language BankfallDescribing 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 1 971 to 1 737. These figures show that, as far as car crime is concerned, the main trend is downwards. language bank at expect, illustrate, increase, proportion Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivebig, dramatic, great, … verb + fallbring, cause, contribute to, … fall + verboccur prepositionfall in See full entry opposite rise defeat
- 7 [singular] fall (of something) 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 Oxford Collocations Dictionary verb + fallbring about, cause, contribute to, … prepositionfall from phrasesthe rise and fall of something See full entry loss of respect
- 8[singular] a situation in which a person, an organization, etc. loses the respect of other people because they have done something wrong the TV preacher’s spectacular fall from grace in Bible
- 9 the Fall [singular] the occasion when Adam and Eve did not obey God and had to leave the Garden of Eden Word OriginOld 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’.Extra examples 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 barbariansIdioms
act of falling
to be doing something that involves risks and that may end in disaster
to stop somebody from falling onto something hard Luckily, a bush broke his fall.
(saying) if you have too high an opinion of yourself or your abilities, something will happen to make you look stupid
(informal, especially North American English) to accept responsibility or punishment for something that you did not do, or did not do alone He took the fall for his boss and resigned. Who will take the fall for the scandal? Someone has to take the fall.
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