down
DOWN
Down (adverb) means From a higher place to a lower one. Example: “She climbed down the ladder carefully.”
adverb
1
From a higher place to a lower one.
"She climbed down the ladder carefully."
"Put the box down over there."
"The cat jumped down from the wall and ran across the garden."
preposition
1
Along or through, moving in a particular direction.
"We cycled down the lane towards the river."
"Tears ran down her cheeks as she laughed."
"They walked down the street together."
adjective
1
Feeling sad or low in spirits.
"He's been feeling down since he lost his job."
"The grey weather made me feel a bit down this week."
"Don't be so down; things will probably look better tomorrow."
2
Not functioning; out of service, especially of a computer system.
"The website has been down all morning."
"The network was down for an hour, so nobody could send email."
"Our booking system is down again, so please call the office instead."
verb
1
To swallow or finish, especially a drink, quickly.
"He downed his coffee in one go."
"She downed a glass of water after the long run."
"The boys downed their lemonade and ran back out to play."
noun
1
Soft, fine feathers, especially from young birds, used to fill pillows and jackets.
"The jacket is filled with goose down."
"The nest was lined with soft down from the mother duck."
"These cushions are stuffed with down, so they feel wonderfully light."
How to use down
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishOne of English's most flexible small words — covering direction, sadness, system outages, drinking fast, and soft feathers.
Common pairings
feeling down
down for maintenance
down a drink
down feathers
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Word forms
- Plural
- downs
- Third person singular
- downs
- Past tense
- downed
- Comparative
- further down, farther down, more down
- Superlative
- furthest down, farthest down, most down
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
She climbed _____ the ladder carefully.
Etymology
From Old English dūne, a shortened form of ofdūne, literally "off the hill" — combining of ("off") with dūn ("hill").
Synonyms
View more →Antonyms
Related words
Rhymes for down
See all rhymes for down →Frequently asked questions
What does “down” mean?
The word “down” means from a higher place to a lower one. In plain terms, one of English's most flexible small words — covering direction, sadness, system outages, drinking fast, and soft feathers.
How do you pronounce “down”?
“Down” is pronounced DOWN (/ˈdaʊ̯n/ in IPA).
How do you use “down” in a sentence?
Here is “down” used in a sentence: “She climbed down the ladder carefully.”
What is the opposite of “down”?
The opposite of “down” — its antonyms — are up, across, back, backwards and rearwards.
What part of speech is “down”?
Depending on how it is used, “down” can be an adverb, a preposition, an adjective, a verb and a noun.
Where does the word “down” come from?
The word “down” comes from Old English. From Old English dūne, a shortened form of ofdūne, literally "off the hill" — combining of ("off") with dūn ("hill").
Is “down” a common word?
“Down” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.
How many meanings does “down” have?
“Down” has 6 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: from a higher place to a lower one.
What is the difference between up and down?
'Down' describes movement or position from a higher place to a lower one, as in 'walk down the stairs.' 'Up' is its exact opposite, describing movement toward a higher place, as in 'climb up.' They form the most basic vertical pair in English, marking the two directions along which things rise or fall.
Is 'down' a preposition or an adverb?
'Down' can be both. As an adverb it modifies a verb, as in 'she sat down.' As a preposition it takes an object, as in 'he ran down the hill.' It also works as an adjective ('feeling down'), a noun (soft feathers), and even a verb ('to down a drink').
What are the different meanings of 'down'?
Besides movement to a lower place, 'down' can mean sad or low in spirits ('feeling down'), reduced ('prices are down'), or not working ('the system is down'). As a noun it means soft feathers, and as a verb it means to swallow quickly or bring something to the ground.
What is an example of 'down' used as an adverb?
'The sun went down behind the hills' shows movement to a lower position. 'Sit down, please' directs someone to lower themselves. 'Turn the volume down' means reduce it. In each case, 'down' modifies the verb and points to a lower place, level, or amount.
Example sentences
Real-world examples showing down in context, drawn from published sources. Any opinions expressed are those of the original source and do not reflect the views of FreeDict.com.
Kristian Prenga surprises Anthony Joshua and knocks him down in the first round.
From
The Guardian · Jul 26, 2026
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