face down
adjective or adverb
variants
or less commonly face-down
or facedown
: with the face down
He was face down on the bed. = He was lying face down on the bed.
Two cards are dealt face down to each player, then the first round of bets is made.—
Thomas L. Clark
Thomas L. Clark… she walked past us to the lab area, placed the paper face down on the table and looked back at us.—David Kwiatkowski
David Kwiatkowski… stood up so fast he knocked his plate of waffles facedown onto the floor.—Ingrid Law
—usually hyphenated before a nounIngrid Law… an alternate paper path has been added to turn out face-down copies in proper order, so they don't have to be collated manually.—William J. Lynott
William J. LynottExamples of face down in a Sentence
The cards were dealt facedown.
He fell facedown in the sand.
Recent Examples on the Web
Police officers caught me, laid me face down in the building’s hallway, and cuffed me.
—Joe Garcia, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2025
Black widows, con women, demented doctors and even a guy going berserk in his underwear make for an engaging rogues’ gallery for Frank and his folksy colleagues to face down.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 10 Oct. 2025
Adair is not seen moving, his hands are still pushed forward and his head is face down on the bed, according to court documents.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 10 Oct. 2025
The video shows the suspect, who was wearing a black hoodie, lying face down on the metal cart.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2025
In 1972, the Sunday Times published an obituary for Flo, Flint’s mother and the dominant matriarch, after she was found face down on the edge of a stream.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
McMuffin sausages and apple pies were burning, and the coworkers — aged 18, 19, 38 and 78 — were helplessly face down on the floor.
—Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
Earlier this month, images circulated on social media showing corpses lying face down on the ground and people being evacuated in a vehicle after a suicide drone was launched.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2025
George Floyd, Charlie Kirk and 'cancel culture' One was a Black man who died face down on a Minneapolis street after a grocery store clerk accused him of passing a counterfeit $20 bill.
—Michael Collins, USA Today, 20 Sep. 2025
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Joe Garcia, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2025
Black widows, con women, demented doctors and even a guy going berserk in his underwear make for an engaging rogues’ gallery for Frank and his folksy colleagues to face down.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 10 Oct. 2025
Adair is not seen moving, his hands are still pushed forward and his head is face down on the bed, according to court documents.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 10 Oct. 2025
The video shows the suspect, who was wearing a black hoodie, lying face down on the metal cart.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2025
In 1972, the Sunday Times published an obituary for Flo, Flint’s mother and the dominant matriarch, after she was found face down on the edge of a stream.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
McMuffin sausages and apple pies were burning, and the coworkers — aged 18, 19, 38 and 78 — were helplessly face down on the floor.
—Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
Earlier this month, images circulated on social media showing corpses lying face down on the ground and people being evacuated in a vehicle after a suicide drone was launched.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2025
George Floyd, Charlie Kirk and 'cancel culture' One was a Black man who died face down on a Minneapolis street after a grocery store clerk accused him of passing a counterfeit $20 bill.
—Michael Collins, USA Today, 20 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Face down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/face%20down. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
facedown
adverb
face·down
ˈfās-ˈdau̇n 
: with the face down
floated facedown
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