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downfall
4 dictionary results for: downfall
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
down·fall       [doun-fawl] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.descent to a lower position or standing; overthrow; ruin.
2.something causing ruin, failure, etc.: Liquor was his downfall.
3.a fall, as of rain, snow, or the like, often sudden or heavy.
4.a trap using a falling weight for killing, injuring, or imprisoning the prey.
[Origin: 1250–1300; ME; see down1, fall]

—Related forms
downfallen, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
down·fall       (doun'fôl')  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
    1. A sudden loss of wealth, rank, reputation, or happiness; ruin.
    2. A cause of sudden ruin.
  2. A fall of rain or snow, especially a heavy or unexpected one.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
downfall

noun
1. failure that results in a loss of position or reputation 
2. the falling to earth of any form of water (rain or snow or hail or sleet or mist) [syn: precipitation] 
3. a sudden decline in strength or number or importance; "the fall of the House of Hapsburg" [syn: fall] [ant: rise] 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Downfall

Down"fall`\, n. 1. A sudden fall; a body of things falling.

Those cataracts or downfalls aforesaid. --Holland.

Each downfall of a flood the mountains pour. --Dryden.

2. A sudden descent from rank or state, reputation or happiness; destruction; ruin.

Dire were the consequences which would follow the downfall of so important a place. --Motley.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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