I. ˈdau̇n adverb
Etymology: Middle English doun, from Old English dūne, short for adūne, of dūne, from a- (from of ), of off, from + dūne, dative of dūn hill
Date: before 12th century
1.
a.
(1) : toward or in a lower physical position
(2) : to a lying or sitting position
(3) : toward or to the ground, floor, or bottom
b. : as a down payment
paid $10 down
c. : on paper
put down what he says
2. : in a direction that is the opposite of up: as
a. : southward
b. : to or toward a point away from the speaker or the speaker's point of reference
c. : in or into the stomach
can't keep food down
3. : to a lesser degree, level, or rate
cool down tensions
4. : to or toward a lower position in a series
5.
a. : to or in a lower or worse condition or status
b. — used to indicate thoroughness or completion
dusted down the house
described him down to his haircut
6. : from a past time
stories passed down by word of mouth
7. : to or in a state of less activity or prominence
8. : to a concentrated state
got the report down to three pages
9. : into defeat
voted the motion down
•
- down to the ground
II. preposition
Date: 14th century
: down along, around, through, toward, in, into, or on
fell down the stairs
down the years
III. verb
Date: 1562
transitive verb
1. : to cause to go or come down: as
a. : bring down 1
down ed the enemy helicopter
b. : consume 3
down ing slices of pizza
2. : to cause (a football) to be out of play
3. : defeat
down a proposal
intransitive verb
: to go down
IV. adjective
Date: circa 1565
1.
a.
(1) : occupying a low position ; specifically : lying on the ground
down timber
(2) : directed or going downward
attendance is down
b. : lower in price
c. : not being in play in football because of wholly stopped progress or because the officials stop the play
the ball was down
d. : defeated or trailing an opponent (as in points scored)
down by two runs
e. baseball : out
two down in the top of the third inning
2.
a. : reduced or low in activity, frequency, or intensity
a down economy
b. : not operating or able to function
the computer is down
c. : depressed , dejected
feeling a bit down
also : depressing
a down movie
d. : sick
down with flu
3. : done , finished
eight down and two to go
4. : completely mastered
had her lines down
— often used with pat
got the answers down pat
5.
a. slang : cool 7
b. slang : understanding or supportive of something or someone — usually used with with
trying to prove that they were down with hip-hop culture — J. E. White
6. : being on record
you're down for two tickets
•
- down on
- down on one's luck
V. noun
Date: 1710
1. : descent , depression
2. : an instance of putting down
3.
a. : a complete play to advance the ball in football
b. : one of a series of four attempts in American football or three attempts in Canadian football to advance the ball 10 yards
4. chiefly British : dislike , grudge
5. : downer
6. : a fundamental quark that has an electric charge of - 1/3 and that is one of the constituents of a nucleon
VI. noun
Etymology: Middle English doun hill, from Old English dūn
Date: 14th century
1. : an undulating usually treeless upland with sparse soil — usually used in plural
2. often capitalized : a sheep of any breed originating in the downs of southern England
VII. noun
Etymology: Middle English doun, from Old Norse dūnn
Date: 14th century
1. : a covering of soft fluffy feathers ; also : these feathers
2. : something soft and fluffy like down