to climb down
29
1.4
- phrasal verb
- /klaɪm daʊn/
:
bajar (de)
- After reaching the top, he slowly climbed down the ladder.
- climb down a ladder
Mellie, who's been chosen to uphold tradition if she leaves, who will climb down the wooden ladder into the gaping mouth of the earth?
- Mellie, who's been chosen to uphold tradition if she leaves, who will climb down the wooden ladder into the gaping mouth of the earth?
Examples
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She carefully climbs down the tree to reach the ground safely.
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Come out your window, climb down the vine.
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I think we can climb down from here.
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I thought we were too high up to climb down.
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You think one of us should climb down?
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Now, I want you to climb down from there very slowly.
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I climbed down a cliff to get you.
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Climb down to level seven.
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After Mr. Earl's lights go off, I climb down the fire escape and cross the street.
Fiction book (1993) -
Get ahold of the rope and climb down.
Synonyms
221
2.8
To become lower, for example temperature or prices
150
2.7
Move from a higher to a lower place
44
1.6
To move something from a high place to a lower place
Antonyms
How Difficult
Surface Forms
Morphology
climb + down
The sense 'to retract or withdraw a position' is a metaphorical extension of the literal meaning of 'climb' + 'down' (physically moving downward/retreating). A B1 learner who knows the constituents can often infer a general notion of retreat or stepping back, but the specific pragmatic nuance of conceding a prior statement under pressure is not fully predictable without exposure, so the relation is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Climb down: The verb climb down comes from the simple picture of using your hands and feet to climb down a ladder, tree, or slope to get lower. So it means 'to go down' from a higher place.