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
The 38-year-old married father was later found face down in a Pennsylvania creek.
—Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 6 Dec. 2025
In 2023, Perry was discovered unresponsive and floating face down in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home after becoming increasingly reliant on the drug.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 3 Dec. 2025
Patients lie face down with their feet dangling over the edge of the examination table.
—Matt Villano, CNN Money, 3 Dec. 2025
Another photo depicts the raccoon lying face down, limbs splayed, next to a toilet.
—Amy McCarthy, PEOPLE, 3 Dec. 2025
Then, during filming, the team was surprised to find a skeleton buried face down in a pit — a teenage girl who was likely murdered as part of a human sacrifice.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 24 Nov. 2025
The boys crashed inside, Zain throwing himself face down on a sofa still wearing his bloodied shirt, and Yazid nosing about looking for bandages and disinfectant.
—Daniyal Mueenuddin, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025
Their images were broadcast widely on Venezuelan television, face down with their arms tied behind their backs.
—Kevin G. Hall, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
The technology used included altered shuffling machines that could read the decks, X-ray machines that could read cards through the table when placed face down, and glasses with hidden cameras.
—Colin Meyn, The Hill, 24 Oct. 2025
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Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 6 Dec. 2025
In 2023, Perry was discovered unresponsive and floating face down in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home after becoming increasingly reliant on the drug.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 3 Dec. 2025
Patients lie face down with their feet dangling over the edge of the examination table.
—Matt Villano, CNN Money, 3 Dec. 2025
Another photo depicts the raccoon lying face down, limbs splayed, next to a toilet.
—Amy McCarthy, PEOPLE, 3 Dec. 2025
Then, during filming, the team was surprised to find a skeleton buried face down in a pit — a teenage girl who was likely murdered as part of a human sacrifice.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 24 Nov. 2025
The boys crashed inside, Zain throwing himself face down on a sofa still wearing his bloodied shirt, and Yazid nosing about looking for bandages and disinfectant.
—Daniyal Mueenuddin, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025
Their images were broadcast widely on Venezuelan television, face down with their arms tied behind their backs.
—Kevin G. Hall, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
The technology used included altered shuffling machines that could read the decks, X-ray machines that could read cards through the table when placed face down, and glasses with hidden cameras.
—Colin Meyn, The Hill, 24 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Face down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/face%20down. Accessed 16 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
facedown
adverb
face·down
ˈfās-ˈdau̇n 
: with the face down
floated facedown
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