as in decreased
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually
as the years went by, the public's interest in the murder case fell away
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Recent Examples of fell away
The sense of a cultural in- and out-group dissolved as niche communities grew and old-school ideas of coolness fell away.
—
Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 8 May 2026
There was a silent boom; in the thrill of the snake, everything unnecessary fell away.
—Literary Hub, 1 May 2026
Three minutes into the flight, the booster switched off its engines and fell away from New Glenn’s upper stage, powered by two BE-3U engines burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 19 Apr. 2026
Sooner or later, those fans and hands fell away, and the statues remained, growing less and less presentable.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Old differences fell away, and the two got along well.
—Alex Ross, New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2026
But, in the process, the funding fell away, Davis said.
—Debra Skodack, Kansas City Star, 10 Mar. 2026
The specks of warmth salvaged from the inside of the patrol car, which had clung to his skin under his gray sweatpants and hooded striped sweatshirt, soon fell away.
—USA Today, 8 Mar. 2026
Midway through a steep sidehill, with a tough right turn at the bottom, racers had to fight to find the fastest line into a hard right turn as the mountain fell away in the other direction.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2026
Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 8 May 2026
There was a silent boom; in the thrill of the snake, everything unnecessary fell away.
—Literary Hub, 1 May 2026
Three minutes into the flight, the booster switched off its engines and fell away from New Glenn’s upper stage, powered by two BE-3U engines burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 19 Apr. 2026
Sooner or later, those fans and hands fell away, and the statues remained, growing less and less presentable.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Old differences fell away, and the two got along well.
—Alex Ross, New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2026
But, in the process, the funding fell away, Davis said.
—Debra Skodack, Kansas City Star, 10 Mar. 2026
The specks of warmth salvaged from the inside of the patrol car, which had clung to his skin under his gray sweatpants and hooded striped sweatshirt, soon fell away.
—USA Today, 8 Mar. 2026
Midway through a steep sidehill, with a tough right turn at the bottom, racers had to fight to find the fastest line into a hard right turn as the mountain fell away in the other direction.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fell away
Verb
-
In 2024, that decreased to 20 percent.—
Ashley Wu,
New York Times,
18 May 2026
-
School enrollment numbers have decreased markedly in Connecticut in the past two years.—
Sasha Allen,
Hartford Courant,
16 May 2026
Verb
-
But they were felled by poor shooting Friday, making just 35% overall and were particularly bad from long range.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
-
But before he was felled at age 68 by a heart attack, Joiner had shared what was in the briefcase with the lead Louisiana State Police investigator on the case, Stefan Montgomery, Joiner's son and the LSP confirmed.—
Stephanie Gosk,
NBC news,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Another theory suggests regulatory changes in China a few years ago appear to have diminished the availability of precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl.—
Mike Stobbe,
Fortune,
13 May 2026
-
The roles of China and Russia, as Iran’s allies, are strengthened; the role of the United States, substantially diminished.—
Robert Kagan,
The Atlantic,
10 May 2026
Verb
-
Once his symptoms subsided, he was transferred to another room, and at least 50 people lined the hallways and cheered him on during the move.—
Rebecca Cohen,
NBC news,
17 May 2026
-
Although fighting largely subsided weeks ago, the Strait of Hormuz, remains blocked.—
Diaa Hadid,
NPR,
16 May 2026
Verb
-
Their 3-point shooting quickly tapered off for the remainder of the game.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
10 May 2026
-
While Brent crude has tapered off from its wartime high of $126 per barrel at the end of April, prices are still more than 38% above levels seen before the Middle East conflict intensified.—
Lee Ying Shan,
CNBC,
8 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Fell away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fell%20away. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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