to drop through the floor
- idiom
:
caer en picada
- After the scandal, the company's profits dropped through the floor in a matter of weeks.
Examples
-
When interest rates rose, the housing market dropped through the floor.
-
After the announcement, their sales dropped through the floor overnight.
-
His motivation dropped through the floor after he failed the exam.
-
The stock prices dropped through the floor after the news.
-
Can you believe how much sales dropped through the floor last month?
-
Customer satisfaction ratings dropped through the floor after the service changes were implemented.
-
When the new competitors entered the market, our sales dropped through the floor almost overnight.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Move or drop down from a higher to a lower place
579
3.9
To fall down suddenly, for example when a person faints or a building breaks
358
1.0
To move down physically or emotionally, often when tired
221
2.8
To become lower, for example temperature or prices
93
5.8
Fall suddenly and steeply from a high place or in amount
83
3.8
To fall or drop suddenly from a higher to a lower place
34
1.8
To fall from a higher place to a lower place
28
4.4
To fall suddenly in price or value
22
3.9
Suddenly fall down because something is weak or hit hard
13
3.9
To fall quickly to a much lower level
7
5.4
To fall suddenly, for example by tripping or by losing value
4
5.8
To fall quickly and steeply, like a plane or stocks
2
6.7
Fall or fail very quickly and completely
To go down very steeply and quickly, often for a plane or submarine
Antonyms
How Low
93
5.8
16
4.1
230
2.5
∞
1.0
47
2.5
Surface Forms
Morphology
The sense 'to decrease or collapse suddenly to a very low level' follows straightforwardly from the constituents: 'drop' (decline), 'through' (completely/past), and 'floor' (the bottom or lower limit). This spatial-to-value metaphor (passing below the floor) is compositional and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the words can reasonably infer the meaning.
Etymology
Drop through the floor paints a picture of something that drops so far it goes right through the floor, like a heavy object crashing through a board. That sudden, dramatic image explains why the phrase means 'to decrease or collapse very quickly'.