Note: these 'words' (valid or invalid) are all the permutations of the word down. These words are obtained by scrambling the letters in down.
Definitions and meaning of down
down
Pronunciation
(Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA(key): /daʊn/
Rhymes: -aʊn
Etymology 1
From Middle Englishdoun, from Old Englishdūne, aphetic form of adūne, from ofdūne(“off the hill”). For the development from directional phrases to prepositions, compare Middle Low Germandāle(“(in/to the) valley”), i.e. "down(wards)".
Adverb
down (not generally comparable, comparativefarther down, superlativefarthest down)
(comparable) From a higher position to a lower one; downwards.
For more quotations using this term, see Citations:down.
(comparable) At a lower or further place or position along a set path.
As a down payment.
On paper (or in a durable record).
To the south (as south is at the bottom of typical maps).
Away from the city (regardless of direction).
1722, Daniel Defoe, A Journal of the Plague Year, London: E. Nutt et al., p. 12,[1]
But then my Servant who I had intended to take down with me [i.e. from London to Bedfordshire], deceiv’d me;
At or towards any place that is visualised as 'down' by virtue of local features or local convention, or arbitrarily, irrespective of direction or elevation change.
Coordinate term:over
(sports) Towards the opponent's side (in ball-sports).
Into a state of non-operation.
To a subordinate or less prestigious position or rank.
(rail transport) In the direction leading away from the principal terminus, away from milepost zero.
(sentence substitute, imperative) Get down.
(UK, academia, dated) Away from Oxford or Cambridge.
From a remoter or higher antiquity.
So as to lessen quantity, level or intensity.
So as to reduce size, weight or volume.
From less to greater detail.
So as to secure or compress something to the floor, ground, or other (usually horizontal) surface.
Used with verbs to indicate that the action of the verb was carried to some state of completion, permanence, or success rather than being of indefinite duration.
Forward, straight ahead.
Usage notes
Down can be used with verbs in ways that change the meaning of the verb in ways not entirely predictable from the meanings of the down and the verb, though related to them. See Category:English phrasal verbs with particle (down).
Antonyms
(antonym(s) of "from a higher position to a lower one"):up
(antonym(s) of "at a lower place"):up
(antonym(s) of "away from the city"):up
(antonym(s) of "into a state of non-operation"):up
(antonym(s) of "rail transport: direction leading away from the principal terminus"):up
(antonym(s) of "in crosswords"):across
(antonym(s) of "forward, straight ahead"):back; backwards; rearwards
Translations
Preposition
down
From the higher end to the lower of.
From north to south of.
From one end to another of (in any direction); along.
(colloquial) At (a given place that is seen as removed from one's present location or other point of reference).
Antonyms
(antonym(s) of "From the higher end to the lower"):up
Derived terms
(from the higher end to the lower):sell down the river, throw one's hotdog down someone's hallway
Translations
Adjective
down (comparativemore down, superlativemost down)(chiefly predicative, but see usage notes)
Facing downwards.
At a lower level than before.
Antonym:up
(informal) Sad, unhappy, depressed, feeling low.
Antonym:up
Sick, wounded, or damaged:
(normally in the combination 'down with') Sick or ill.
(not comparable, military, law enforcement, slang, of a person) Wounded and unable to move normally, or killed.
(veterinary medicine, of a cow) Stranded in a recumbent position; unable to stand.
Synonym:(of "down cow")downer
a down cow
(not comparable, military, aviation, slang, of an aircraft) Mechanically failed, collided, shot down, or otherwise suddenly unable to fly.
(not comparable) Inoperable; out of order; out of service.
Antonym:up
Having a lower score than an opponent.
Antonym:up
(baseball, cricket, colloquial, following the noun modified) Out.
(colloquial, with "on") Negative about; hostile to.
(African-American Vernacular, slang) Accepted, respected, or loyally participating in the (thug) community.
Finished (of a task); defeated or dealt with (of an opponent or obstacle); elapsed (of time). Often coupled with to go (remaining).
Thoroughly practiced, learned or memorised; mastered. (Compare down pat.)
(obsolete) Downright; absolute; positive.
(of a tree, limb, etc) Fallen or felled.
1935 (printed in 2009), Powell, Shenandoah Letters, 54:
Will you please let me get two loads of down wood.
(rail transport, of a train) Travelling in the direction leading away from the principal terminus, away from milepost zero.
Antonym:up
Usage notes
In many senses, using this adjective in an attributive position (before the noun) is avoided in everyday Standard English:
Compare a synonym, faulty, which can be used either predicatively or attributively:
(both acceptable)
In certain specialised uses (such as the veterinary medicine, timber and rail transport senses), there is no avoidance of the attributive placement, which is used freely.
Derived terms
down bad
down but not out
downtime
Translations
Verb
down (third-person singular simple presentdowns, present participledowning, simple past and past participledowned)
(transitive) To knock (someone or something) down; to cause to come down; to fell. [from 16th c.]
(transitive) Specifically, to cause (something in the air) to fall to the ground; to bring down (with a missile etc.). [from 19th c.]
(transitive) To lower; to put (something) down. [from 16th c.]
(transitive, figurative) To defeat; to overpower. [from 17th. c.]
(transitive, colloquial) To disparage; to put down. [from 18th c.]
(intransitive, rare or obsolete) To go or come down; to descend. [from 17th. c.]
(transitive, colloquial) To drink or swallow, especially without stopping before the vessel containing the liquid is empty. [from 19th c.]
(transitive, American football, Canadian football) To render (the ball) dead, typically by touching the ground while in possession. [from 19th c.]
(transitive, golf, pocket billiards) To sink (a ball) into a hole or pocket. [from 20th c.]
Synonyms
(drink): See also Thesaurus:drink
Derived terms
double down
down tools
triple down
Translations
Noun
down (pluraldowns)
A negative aspect; a downer, a downside.
(dated) A grudge (on someone).
An act of swallowing an entire drink at once.
(American football) A single play, from the time the ball is snapped (the start) to the time the whistle is blown (the end) when the ball is down, or is downed.
(crosswords) A clue whose solution runs vertically in the grid.
A downstairs room of a two-story house.
Down payment.
The lightest quark with a charge number of −1⁄3.
Derived terms
Translations
References
Andrea Tyler and Vyvyan Evans, "Spatial particles of orientation", in The Semantics of English Prepositions: Spatial Scenes, Embodied Meaning and Cognition, Cambridge University Press, 2003, 0-521-81430 8
Etymology 2
From Middle Englishdoune, from Old Englishdūn, from Proto-West Germanic*dūn(“sandhill, dune”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Proto-Germanic*dūnaz, *dūnǭ(“pile, heap”), from Proto-Indo-European*dʰewh₂-(“smoke, haze, dust”). Alternatively, perhaps borrowed from Proto-Celtic*dūnom(“hill; hillfort”) (compare Welshdin(“hill”), Irishdún(“hill, fort”)), from Proto-Indo-European*dʰewh₂-(“to finish, come full circle”). Cognate with West Frisiandún(“dune, sandhill”), Dutchduin(“dune, sandhill”), GermanDüne(“dune”). More at town; akin to dune. Doublet of Down.
Noun
down (countable and uncountable, pluraldowns)
(especially Southern England, also Australia, often plural, often in place names) A hill; in England, especially a chalk hill.
(usually in the plural) A field, especially one used for horse racing.
(UK, chiefly in the plural) A tract of poor, sandy, undulating or hilly land near the sea, covered with fine turf which serves chiefly for the grazing of sheep.
Derived terms
Translations
Etymology 3
From Middle Englishdoun, from Old Norsedúnn, from Proto-Germanic*dūnaz(“down”), which is related to *dauniz(“(pleasant) smell”), from Proto-Indo-European*dʰowh₂-nis, from the root *dʰewh₂-.
Cognate with Saterland FrisianDuune(“fluff, down”), GermanDaune(“down”) and Danishdun(“down”).
Noun
down (countable and uncountable, pluraldowns)
Soft, fluffy immature feathers which grow on young birds. Used as insulating material in duvets, sleeping bags and jackets.
(botany) The pubescence of plants; the hairy crown or envelope of the seeds of certain plants, such as the thistle.
The soft hair of the face when beginning to appear.
That which is made of down, as a bed or pillow; that which affords ease and repose, like a bed of down.
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
down (third-person singular simple presentdowns, present participledowning, simple past and past participledowned)
(transitive) To cover, ornament, line, or stuff with down.