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down

The adverb down means "from a higher place to a lower one," like when a person climbs down a ladder or a waiter puts a tray full of cakes down on a table.

Anything that moves lower — in height, location, or volume — is down, so you can travel down south, tell your dog to get down, or turn your loud music down. Down can also refer to a mood or condition; if you're feeling down, you're sad, and if your computer is down, it's not working. Another meaning of down is the soft feathers of a young bird, which is sometimes used to fill coats or comforters.

PRIMARY MEANINGS OF: down

1
 advadjvn
spatially or metaphorically from a higher to a lower level or position
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
cause to come or go down
(American football) a complete play to advance the football
2
 v
drink down entirely
3
 advadj
in an inactive or inoperative state
not functioning (temporarily or permanently)
4
 adj
filled with melancholy and despondency
5
 adj
being put out by a strikeout
6
 adv
away from a more central or a more northerly place
7
 adv
paid in cash at time of purchase
8
 adv
from an earlier time
9
 adjv
understood perfectly
improve or perfect by pruning or polishing
10
 n
soft fine feathers
11
 n
(usually plural) a rolling treeless highland with little soil
FULL DEFINITIONS OF: down
1

adv spatially or metaphorically from a higher to a lower level or position

“don't fall down”
“rode the lift up and skied down”
Synonyms:
downward, downwardly, downwards
Antonyms:
up, upward, upwardly, upwards
spatially or metaphorically from a lower to a higher position

adv to a lower intensity

“he slowly phased down the light until the stage was completely black”
Antonyms:
up
to a higher intensity

adj being or moving lower in position or less in some value

“lay face down”
“the moon is down”
“our team is down by a run”
“down by a pawn”
“the stock market is down today”
Synonyms
low
literal meanings; being at or having a relatively small elevation or upward extension
descending
coming down or downward
behind
having the lower score or lagging position in a contest
downbound
heading in any direction that is conventionally down
downcast
directed downward
downfield
toward or in the defending team's end of the playing field
downward
on or toward a surface regarded as a base
fallen
having dropped by the force of gravity
set
being below the horizon
thrown
caused to fall to the ground
weak
tending downward in price
Antonyms:
up
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
high
(literal meaning) being at or having a relatively great or specific elevation or upward extension (sometimes used in combinations like `knee-high')
ascending
moving or going or growing upward
ahead, in the lead, leading
having the leading position or higher score in a contest
aweigh
(used of an anchor) hanging clear of the bottom
dormie, dormy
in match play a side that stands as many holes ahead as there are holes remaining to be played
heavenward, skyward
directed toward heaven or the sky
risen
(of e.g. celestial bodies) above the horizon
sprouted
(of growing vegetation) having just emerged from the ground
upbound
heading in any direction that is conventionally up
upfield
away from the defending teams' end of the playing field
upward
directed up
show more antonyms...

adj becoming progressively lower

“the down trend in the real estate market”
Synonyms
falling
becoming lower or less in degree or value

adj extending or moving from a higher to a lower place

“the down staircase”
Synonyms:
downward
descending
coming down or downward

adj lower than previously

“prices are down”
Synonyms:
depressed
low
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount

adj shut

“the shades were down”
Synonyms
lowered
below the surround or below the normal position

v cause to come or go down

“The policeman downed the heavily armed suspect”
“The mugger knocked down the old lady after she refused to hand over her wallet”
Synonyms:
cut down, knock down, pull down, push down
Types:
submarine
bring down with a blow to the legs
Type of:
strike
deliver a sharp blow, as with the hand, fist, or weapon

v bring down or defeat (an opponent)

Type of:
defeat, get the better of, overcome
win a victory over

v shoot at and force to come down

Synonyms:
land, shoot down

n (American football) a complete play to advance the football

“you have four downs to gain ten yards”
Type of:
play, turn
(game) the activity of doing something in an agreed succession
2

v drink down entirely

“He downed three martinis before dinner”
Synonyms:
belt down, bolt down, drink down, kill, pop, pour down, toss off
Type of:
drink, imbibe
take in liquids

v eat immoderately

“Some people can down a pound of meat in the course of one meal”
Synonyms:
consume, devour, go through
Type of:
eat
take in solid food
3

adv in an inactive or inoperative state

“the factory went down during the strike”
“the computer went down again”

adj not functioning (temporarily or permanently)

“we can't work because the computer is down”
Synonyms
inoperative
not working or taking effect
4

adj filled with melancholy and despondency

Synonyms:
blue, depressed, dispirited, down in the mouth, downcast, downhearted, gloomy, grim, low, low-spirited
dejected
affected or marked by low spirits
5

adj being put out by a strikeout

“two down in the bottom of the ninth”
Synonyms
out
not allowed to continue to bat or run
6

adv away from a more central or a more northerly place

“was sent down to work at the regional office”
“worked down on the farm”
“came down for the wedding”
“flew down to Florida”
Antonyms:
up
to a more central or a more northerly place
7

adv paid in cash at time of purchase

“put ten dollars down on the necklace”
8

adv from an earlier time

“the story was passed down from father to son”
9

adj understood perfectly

“had his algebra problems down”
Synonyms:
down pat, mastered
perfect
being complete of its kind and without defect or blemish

v improve or perfect by pruning or polishing

Synonyms:
fine-tune, polish, refine
Types:
over-refine, overrefine
refine too much or with excess of subtlety
civilise, civilize, cultivate, educate, school, train
teach or refine to be discriminative in taste or judgment
sophisticate
make less natural or innocent
Type of:
ameliorate, amend, better, improve, meliorate
to make better
10

n soft fine feathers

Synonyms:
down feather
Types:
show 5 types...
hide 5 types...
duck down
down of the duck
goose down
down of the goose
swan's down
down of the swan
plumule
down feather of young birds; persists in some adult birds
eiderdown
down of the eider duck
Type of:
feather, plumage, plume
the light horny waterproof structure forming the external covering of birds

n fine soft dense hair (as the fine short hair of cattle or deer or the wool of sheep or the undercoat of certain dogs)

Synonyms:
pile
Types:
lanugo
the fine downy hair covering a human fetus; normally shed during the ninth month of gestation
Type of:
hair
a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss
11

n (usually plural) a rolling treeless highland with little soil

Type of:
highland, upland
elevated (e.g., mountainous) land
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