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falling off

falling off

9 4.8
A clear drop in how well something works or how much there is
  • noun
translation icon : declive
  • The manager reported a noticeable falling off in product quality over the last quarter.

Yeah, Bros, your fall off needs to be studied.

Examples

  • The coach observed a steady falling off in the team's performance during the season.

  • My hunch is that after 1917 there was a rapid falling off of working-class interest in Thoreauvian ideas.

    Academic text (1999)
  • We, we, we saw a fall off of supply available in gold earlier this year.

  • - Well I asked 'em and they just said that business was falling off is all.

  • The unpleasant fact is that church attendance is falling off everywhere, gentlemen.

  • I noticed a slight falling-off in attendance today.

  • Better than 20 years ago, Romano Amerio remarked in Iota Unum on the dramatic falling off of Rome's intellectual specific gravity.

    Blog text (6)
  • After several months of challenges, there was a significant falling off in employee morale at the company.

Synonyms

drop
vsfalling off
230 2.5

A sudden large decrease in amount or value

includes sudden sharp decreases but also slower noticeable decreases
fall
vsfalling off
106 2.5

A sudden drop in amount, value, or importance

is broader, including less extreme or more gradual noticeable declines
slack
vsfalling off
94 4.5

A period when activity or quality is lower than usual

is the general label for a clear decrease, not only lowered activity
slump
vsfalling off
65 4.6

A period when business or the economy falls a lot

focuses on a noticeable decline without implying it lasts for a period
dip
vsfalling off
50 3.3

A sudden fall in amount or value

refers more generally to any clear decline in performance or quality
drop-off
vsfalling off
10 3.9

A sudden decrease in amount, quality or rate

is similar but can describe any clear decline not only abrupt ones
falloff
vsfalling off
3 4.0

A drop in amount, level, or quality

is the same idea described as an ongoing noticeable decrease
slippage
vsfalling off
1 6.7

A slow drop from an expected level of performance

is any noticeable decline, not limited to slow slips from standards
ebbing
vsfalling off
1 6.7

A slow decrease in strength, amount, or intensity

covers that gradual weakening but also sharper noticeable decreases
downslide
vsfalling off
1 5.1

A period when something gets worse

denotes a clear drop but not necessarily a continuous worsening process
dwindling
vsfalling off
1 5.2

A slow decrease in size, number, or strength

can mean the same decrease but may be sudden or clearly noticeable
decline in quality
vsfalling off
1 3.9

A fall in how good something is over time

is broader, applying to declines in amount or performance as well
waning
vsfalling off
1 6.0

A gradual decrease in size or strength

is similar but applies to any clear decline, steady or abrupt

Antonyms

1.6

An increase in size, number, or importance of something

619 1.1

A change that makes something better

How Much

collapse
350 4.1
drop
230 2.5
to slump
16 4.1
falling off
9 4.8
decline
439 3.9
to dip
47 2.5

Surface Forms

falling off singular
falling offs plural

Morphology

fall + off

The noun 'falling off' is compositionally built from the verb 'fall' (to drop) plus the particle 'off' (away/down from a norm), so the idea of a decline is directly inferable from the constituents. This motion-away/decline pattern is common in English (and paralleled in many other languages), so an average B1 learner who knows both words would likely understand the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The noun falling off comes from the simple image of something falling off a shelf or a tree, leaving less behind. So, when people talk about a falling off in performance or sales, they mean 'a drop' or 'a decrease' in amount or quality.