1
as in death
something that is the cause of one's ultimate failure or loss of life
an insatiable love of money would be their downfall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in deterioration
a change to a lower state or level
the gradual downfall of the Roman Empire
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in demise
a loss of status
an ill-advised speech that proved to be the cause of the candidate's downfall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in rain
a steady falling of water from the sky in significant quantity
we ducked under an overhang to shelter ourselves from the sudden downfall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of downfall
Its rapid downfall was the most prominent case of failure in China’s property sector, which was embroiled in a liquidity crisis after authorities cracked down on excessive borrowing in the industry as many other developers had also defaulted or underwent restructuring.
—
ABC News, 23 Apr. 2026
The story of Lee’s death immediately became a sign of the downfall of one of America’s great cities, but, Shawn Wen writes, that narrative proved to be completely wrong.
—Stacey Vanek Smith, Bloomberg, 23 Apr. 2026
Swalwell’s downfall was particularly swift; his 16-year political career imploded over a single weekend.
—Robert Abitbol, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2026
Swalwell’s downfall might even show that, if old-school journalism can still mete out consequences for bad behavior, new media can sometimes accelerate this process, rather than dilute it.
—Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for downfall
ABC News, 23 Apr. 2026
The story of Lee’s death immediately became a sign of the downfall of one of America’s great cities, but, Shawn Wen writes, that narrative proved to be completely wrong.
—Stacey Vanek Smith, Bloomberg, 23 Apr. 2026
Swalwell’s downfall was particularly swift; his 16-year political career imploded over a single weekend.
—Robert Abitbol, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2026
Swalwell’s downfall might even show that, if old-school journalism can still mete out consequences for bad behavior, new media can sometimes accelerate this process, rather than dilute it.
—Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for downfall
Recent Examples of Synonyms for downfall
Noun
-
Aoun’s confirmation of their deaths comes after the agency earlier reported that the three were trapped beneath rubble.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Based on preliminary data from the CHP’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, more than 110,000 crashes in 2025 resulted from unsafe speeds, leading to more than 400 deaths and injuring more than 68,000 people.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Over the last decade, the parish began to lose these buildings to age, mold and deterioration.—
Desiree Mathurin
April 28,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
-
The Swiss Eugen Bleuler, a follower of Kraepelin, replaced the term dementia praecox, which implied hopeless deterioration, with the softer term schizophrenia.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Since Gateway’s demise, Northrop has been positioning the HALO module as an option for a surface habitat, and Europe may also suggest that I-HAB be used on the surface as well.—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Perhaps the owner’s unexpected absence was an indication that the rumors about my imminent demise were wrong and that things were not so certain.—
Saïd Sayrafiezadeh,
New Yorker,
26 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The last month has seen extensive rain, tornado watches, then warnings and flooding as the Des Plaines and Fox rivers were filled beyond capacity, Kumar said.—
Joseph States,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Locally heavy rain will quickly reduce visibility and result in ponding of water on roadways, standing water in low lying areas, and minor flooding of creeks, streams, and areas of poor drainage.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
But Church, undeterred, was drawn to the idea that those processes offered lessons in destruction and renewal which could be applied to a nation teetering on civil war.—
Sebastian Smee,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
The bottom line is that the pressure on the great American people, because of these people who are, like, really intent on American and Israeli destruction with their nuclear weapons are still in power.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
But the Longwood bear’s girth illustrates both the natural world’s resilience and its degradation.—
Stephen Hudak,
The Orlando Sentinel,
4 May 2026
-
However, the degradation efficiency of individual Bacillus strain and the single-enzyme system remains limited.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
3 May 2026
Noun
-
The company, in its second bankruptcy, had been struggling for years and failed to secure a last-minute rescue deal, forcing it into an immediate wind-down after 34 years in operation.—
Gloria Pazmino,
CNN Money,
2 May 2026
-
But on Friday, reports surfaced that a wind-down was imminent after negotiations between the company, its bondholders and the White House appeared to break down.—
Yuliya Talmazan,
NBC news,
2 May 2026
Noun
-
The likelihood of lightning increases as a thunderstorm gets closer and reaches its highest point when the storm is directly overhead.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
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Some storms could produce hail larger than 3 inches in diameter, especially with stronger rotating cells.—
Brandi D. Addison,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Downfall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/downfall. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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