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What does "fall" mean?

In addition to the idioms beginning with fall, also see bottom drops (falls) out; break one's fall; easy as pie (falling off a log); let drop (fall); let the chips fall where they may; ride for a fall; take the fall.

See fall in WNW Idioms

fall (all) over oneself

Informal to behave in too eager or zealous a manner

fall among

to come among by chance

fall apart

to crumble, disintegrate, disunite, etc.

fall away

to take away friendship, support, etc.; desert
to become less in size, strength, etc.; specif., to grow thin and weak

fall back

to withdraw; give way; retreat

fall back on

or fall back upon

to turn, or return, to for security or help
to retreat to

fall behind

to be outdistanced; drop behind
to fail to pay on time; be in arrears

fall down on

Slang to fail or be unsuccessful in (a job, etc.)

fall for

â Informal

to fall in love with; become infatuated with
to be tricked or deceived by

fall foul of

or fall afoul of

to collide with or become entangled with
to get into trouble or conflict with

fall in

to collapse inward; cave in
to agree
Mil. to line up in proper formation

fall in with

to meet by chance
to meet and join
to agree with; comply with

fall off

to become smaller, less, lighter, etc.
to become worse; decline
Naut. to swing away from the heading, often, specif., to leeward

fall on

or fall upon

to attack
to be the duty of

fall out

to have a disagreement; quarrel
to happen; result
Mil. to leave one's place in a formation

fall short

to be lacking
to fail to meet a standard or goal: with of

fall through

to come to nothing; fail

fall to

to begin; start; specif.,

to start attacking
to start eating

fall under

to come under (an influence, etc.)
to be listed or classified as

ride for a fall

to behave in a manner likely to cause one trouble or injury

the Fall (of Man)

Christian Theol. Adam's sin of yielding to temptation in eating the forbidden fruit, and his subsequent loss of grace

the fall of the cards

the chance distribution of cards in a given deal

See fall in American Heritage Dictionary 4 Idioms

fall back

/upon

To rely on: fall back on old friends in time of need.
To resort to: I had to fall back on my savings when I was unemployed.

fall between (the) two stools

To fail because of an inability to reconcile or choose between two courses of action.

fall flat

To fail miserably when attempting to achieve a result.
To have no effect: The jokes fell flat.

foul

fall

/afoul

Nautical

To collide. Used of vessels.
To clash: fell foul of the law.

fall from grace

To experience a major reduction in status or prestige.

fall into line

To adhere to established rules or predetermined courses of action.

fall in with

To agree with or be in harmony with: Their views fall in with ours.
To associate or begin to associate with: fell in with the wrong crowd.

fall on deaf ears

To go unheeded; be ignored completely: “Moscow's own familiar charges . . . will also fall on deaf ears” (Foreign Affairs).

backward

fall over /backwards

To overexert oneself to do or accomplish something: We fell over backward to complete the project on time.

fall over (oneself)

To display inordinate, typically effusive, enthusiasm: fell over themselves to impress the general's wife.

fall prey to

To be put into such a vulnerable position as to be at risk of harm, destruction, or invasion: a person who fell prey to swindlers; did not want the country to fall prey to terrorists.

fall short

To fail to attain a specified amount, level, or degree: an athlete whose skill fell far short of expectations.
To prove inadequate: Food supplies fell short.

fall through the cracks

To pass unnoticed, neglected, or unchecked: “In the past, many learning disabled children fell through the cracks” (Judith Harkness Richardson).

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