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fall

fall

40 8.8
A loss of innocence through wrong action
  • noun
  • /fɔl/
  • Literature
translation icon : caída
  • The devil who steals Sancho's donkey parodies Don Quixote and his fall from Rosinante.
  • fall from grace
  • the fall of man

Let them have their fall and then you can maybe talk them through it if you want.

Examples

  • How else are we to explain our fall from grace?

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Furthermore, the weakness caused by the fall induces personal sin, something from which no one is exempt.

    Academic text (1992)
  • And evil is sort of a fall from higher being to lower being.

  • Not even six months since her fall, but it felt like years.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • My own fall from grace was not as abrupt as either of my siblings.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • The effect of Karim's fall on him is primarily spiritual and psychological.

    Academic text (1997)
  • However, the fall of the empire left Balumil isolated for five millennia.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • His unexpected fall from grace shocked everyone who knew him as a moral leader.

  • The tale of her fall serves as a cautionary reminder about the dangers of ambition.

  • After years of dedication, his sudden fall from esteemed company left many wondering what went wrong.

Synonyms

8 6.6

A loss of status and respect after wrongdoing

is a moral or spiritual loss of innocence rather than social standing
fallenness
vsfall
  • Literature
9.9

A state of having lost moral or spiritual goodness

is the initial lapse into sin that creates that state

Antonyms

purity
  • Formal
34 3.9

The state of being without moral wrong or corruption

Idioms

To become available to people who might use it to harm others

11 6.5

Stop taking part or trying because of problems

A loss of status and respect after wrongdoing

To accept what happens and not try to change the result

6 7.6

To fail badly and embarrass yourself in front of other people

To fail completely and feel embarrassed in front of others

4 8.4

To accept blame or quit a job to protect other people

4 6.4

To get something good without trying or expecting it

To begin behaving badly again and lose people's respect

Not get noticed or dealt with

Children often look and behave like their parents

1 6.4

To react strongly because something is very funny or surprising

To not be easily fooled because you have experience

To get something good without effort or planning

1 9.1

To lose your balance and land on your backside in an awkward or embarrassing way

Suddenly fail completely because it is weak or badly built

To die as a Christian who trusts in God and expects life after death

Fail at the final stage after earlier success

To look much less attractive after a sudden change

Fail to reach either goal because you try to do both

Things sold or bought secretly because they were stolen

To die or suddenly lose an important position

To get things someone probably stole and sold cheaply

8.8

To go to bed or sleep

Accept a big risk to protect other people

To keep trying after many failures no matter how often you fail

Hug someone tightly because you feel very happy or relieved

Continue doing something with energy until you can no longer

Compounds

fall guy
  • Informal
19 7.6

A person who others blame so they avoid punishment

free fall
  • Specialized
6 4.0

Movement of something downwards while only gravity pulls it

6 4.6

A sudden large drop in value, often of stocks or prices

1 6.0

A moment when a play or show ends and the curtain comes down

Fall of Man
  • Literature
1 8.9

An event in the Bible when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, lost their innocence, and left the Garden

fall armyworm
  • Specialized
8.6

A caterpillar that eats and destroys corn and other grass crops

fall girl
  • Offensive
9.2

A woman who is easily tricked and often blamed for other people's mistakes

fall cankerworm
  • Specialized
9.9

A green or brown caterpillar with white stripes that eats tree leaves in autumn

A small European plant with yellow flowers that blooms in the fall and is now common in North America

6.0

The time when day and night are almost the same length, marking the start of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere

Fall of man
  • Literature
9.9

A Christian belief that people lose their innocence when they disobey God

fall webworm
  • Specialized
9.9

A caterpillar that lives in large silk nests on tree branches and eats the leaves in late summer and fall

4.7

A plant that produces flowers in autumn

A bush that loses its leaves and has large cone-shaped flowers in fall

A cover that folds down to protect piano keys when not played

How Serious

depravity
  • Formal
25 8.8
fall
  • Literature
40 8.8
transgression
49 8.1
lapse
81 4.9
slip
79 1.6

Surface Forms

fall singular
falls plural

Etymology

The noun fall for a lapse into wrongdoing comes from the same idea of falling from a better state, from old English feallan 'to fall'. So a 'fall' is a loss of innocence or moral failure.