falls 1 of 2

present tense third-person singular of fall
1
as in stumbles
to go down from an upright position suddenly and involuntarily better sand that walkway before somebody falls on the ice

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
3
4
5
6
7
8

falls

2 of 2

noun

plural of fall
as in waterfall
a fall of water usually from a great height tourists were shocked to see a man jump into the water and go over the falls

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of falls
Verb
And King Priam, at great personal risk, shows up with a ransom and falls on his knees and clasps Achilles’ hand. Literary Hub, 3 Nov. 2025 As Venus and Chiron clash, an attempt to connect with a new acquaintance falls flat. Usa Today, USA Today, 2 Nov. 2025 This version falls right at the hips and has a relaxed yet feminine silhouette, thanks to its cap-like sleeves. Alesandra Dubin, Travel + Leisure, 31 Oct. 2025 And the oversized top has a split hem that falls below the bum. Melody Kazel, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025 Reduce heat to low; simmer, covered and stirring occasionally, until beef easily falls apart when pressed with the back of a spoon and sauce has thickened enough to coat beef, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Jasmine Smith, Southern Living, 30 Oct. 2025 Effectiveness drops sharply with shorter barrels or longer ranges when velocity falls below the fragmentation threshold. Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2025 The typical New Hampshire household now earns nearly $100,000 a year, yet a family of four with this income still falls about $2,000 short of covering basic needs annually, the report states. Celia Fernandez, CNBC, 30 Oct. 2025 For now, the burden largely falls on defendants — many still deep in addiction, many who are homeless — to find and secure treatment on their own. Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Oct. 2025
Noun
Clear steps, porches and walkways to prevent falls. Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2025 In 43% of cases, injury was caused by a direct hit by the ball, followed by falls while playing (28%), and being hit by the paddle (12%). New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2025 Seeing the awe-inspiring falls is the top priority for most travelers coming to Cumberland Falls State Resort Park. Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 18 Oct. 2025 Bankruptcies, drunk driving charges, delinquent child support, foreclosures, nickel-and-dime car wrecks, suspicious slip-and-falls, dubious claims of disabilities — the stock-in- trade of a run-of-the-mill street lawyer whose law school dreams of riches had faded so dim they were almost gone. Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 17 Oct. 2025 Injuries typically result from direct hits to the eye by a ball or paddle, or from falls. Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025 If the lake remains ice-free later into the season, as is expected in milder falls, snow events can be more frequent and intense. Brandi D. Addison, Cincinnati Enquirer, 15 Oct. 2025 The island has been troubled by ash falls and lava flows since 1995, when the Soufriere Hills volcano erupted for the first time in hundreds of years. Roshane Thomas, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025 High bone density may reduce the risk of fractures, especially in older adults, for whom even minor falls can lead to serious injuries. Lauren Manaker Ms, Verywell Health, 10 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for falls
Verb
  • But Zoë’s first adaptation stumbles out of the gate — in large part because this show isn’t really her show.
    Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 Oct. 2025
  • With the three Premier League stumbles and a grating 1-0 Champions League shutout to Galatasaray, Liverpool found itself with four uninterrupted losses for the first time since 2014.
    Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • If someone succumbs to the heat, promptly relocate them to a cool, shaded location.
    Bay Area Weather Report, Mercury News, 23 Sep. 2025
  • When Day succumbs to his wounds, Dusk seizes the vacuum, claiming Hari Seldon’s psychohistory crystal.
    JP Mangalindan, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Their investigation plunges them into the shadowy corners of New York and beyond — where the trio uncovers a dangerous web of secrets connecting powerful billionaires, old-school mobsters and the mysterious residents of the Arconia.
    Selome Hailu, Variety, 28 Oct. 2025
  • While the filmmaker’s first nine movies were modestly budgeted — see Inherent Vice (2014) or Hard Eight (1996) — the $140 million One Battle, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, plunges Anderson into franchise-like economics.
    Peter Bart, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • That’s important because your power naturally and rapidly decreases as you age, Booker says.
    Jenny McCoy, SELF, 24 Oct. 2025
  • For instance, frequently reloading a gun before the ammo counter hits zero will present a Flaw called Overprepared, which increases each gun’s magazine size but temporarily decreases a character’s damage output if a gun does reach zero ammo before a reload.
    Jason Fanelli, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • In the film, a young girl (Linda Blair) becomes possessed by a demon and gradually descends into madness.
    Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
  • The stakes just keep getting higher in this Grand Guignol of bloodthirsty excess, as bereaved government agent Soo-hyun (Lee Byung-hun) descends into shocking depravity in his pursuit of serial killer Kyung-chul (Choi Min-sik).
    Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • However, each conversion step consumes energy, introduces delay, and loses some of the information carried by the original signal.
    Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 2 Nov. 2025
  • Judges also review arbitration awards with a high degree of deference, meaning the side that loses the arbitration is often disincentivized to petition a judge to vacate the award.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 31 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The headless ghost of Hooch Simpson supposedly still wanders the area that was once Skidoo, looking for his noggin.
    Graham Averill, Outside, 28 Oct. 2025
  • When Rashid wanders into the office, Vahid stops his call — there’s something about this man’s shuffle that strikes him as familiar.
    David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Steven Spielberg saw the original cut of the film prior to its release in which Katie dies, and convinced Peli to reshoot the more ominous ending where Featherston simply goes missing.
    Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Oct. 2025
  • While some tests can provide hints that someone has the condition, CTE can only be definitively diagnosed after a person dies and researchers can physically examine that person’s brain, Crary said.
    Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 22 Oct. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Falls.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/falls. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on falls

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!