Definition

1. Verb (intransitive):
   • To move from a higher to a lower place or position; to descend. This is the most literal meaning, often used for people, objects, or things like rain or snow.
   • To fall or collapse. This can refer to structures or, figuratively, to a person's emotional or physical state.
   • To be reduced or simplified to a core element; to amount to. This figurative meaning describes the essence or final result of something complex.
   • To criticize or reprimand harshly. This figurative usage means to express strong disapproval, often from a position of authority.
   • To become ill, especially with a common sickness. This informal meaning indicates the onset of an illness.

Usage Examples

• Literal Descent:
  • The helicopter will come down in that field.
  • Wait for the elevator to come down to the ground floor.
• Falling or Collapsing:
  • Several trees came down in the storm last night.
  • Her smile came down when she heard the bad news.
• Being Reduced to an Essence:
  • All his arguments come down to a fear of change.
  • The recipe comes down to using fresh, high-quality ingredients.
• Harsh Criticism:
  • The manager came down hard on the team for missing the deadline.
  • The editorial came down severely on the government's new policy.
• Becoming Ill:
  • I think I'm coming down with a cold.
  • She came down with the flu and had to stay in bed.

Advanced Usage

• "to come down in the world": to lose one's social status or financial position.
  • After the business failed, he really came down in the world.
• "to come down on the side of (someone/something)": to decide to support a particular person, group, or opinion.
  • After much deliberation, the judge came down on the side of the plaintiff.
• "to come down to earth": to return to reality or normal life after a period of excitement or fantasy; to be practical.
  • After winning the lottery, it took him months to come down to earth.

Variants and Related Words

• Come-down (noun): A feeling of disappointment or depression after excitement; a loss of status.
  • Finishing the project was a real come-down after all the adrenaline.
• Descend (verb): A more formal synonym for the literal meaning of moving downward.
• Condescend (verb): To behave as if one is superior to others. (Note: This is related but has a distinct, often negative, meaning).

Synonyms

• Descend: To move or fall downward.
• Fall: To drop or descend under the force of gravity.
• Criticize: To indicate the faults of someone or something in a disapproving way.
• Boil down to: To be summarized as; to amount to.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Come down on: To criticize or punish severely. (This is the same as the "harsh criticism" definition).
  • The principal came down on the students for vandalism.
• Come down with: To begin to suffer from an illness.
  • Half the office came down with food poisoning.
• Come down from: To feel the after-effects of a drug; or, less commonly, to descend from a place.
  • He was coming down from a caffeine high.

Related Idioms

• Come down like a ton of bricks: To criticize or punish someone very severely.
  • If you're late again, the boss will come down on you like a ton of bricks.
• Come down to us: To be passed on through history or tradition.
  • This ancient tale has come down to us through many generations.

Verb

1. criticize or reprimand harshly
   • The critics came down hard on the new play
2. get sick
   • She fell sick last Friday, and now she is in the hospital
3. fall from clouds
   • rain, snow and sleet were falling
   • Vesuvius precipitated its fiery, destructive rage on Herculaneum
4. be the essential element
   • The proposal boils down to a compromise
5. move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way
   • The temperature is going down
   • The barometer is falling
   • The curtain fell on the diva
   • Her hand went up and then fell again