Old English feallan (class VII strong verb; past tense feoll. past participle feallen ) "to fall; fail, decay, die," from Proto-Germanic *fallanan (cf. Old Frisian falla. Old Saxon fallan. Dutch vallen. Old Norse falla. Old High German fallan. German fallen ), from PIE root *pol- "to fall" (cf. Armenian p'ul "downfall," Lithuanian puola "to fall," Old Prussian aupallai "finds," literally "falls upon").
Most of the figurative senses had developed in Middle English. Meaning "to be reduced" (as temperature) is from 1650s. To fall in love is attested from 1520s; to fall asleep is late 14c. Fall through "come to naught" is from 1781. To fall for something is from 1903.
c.1200, "a falling;" see fall (n.). Old English noun form, fealle. meant "snare, trap." Sense of "autumn" (now only in U.S.) is 1660s, short for fall of the leaf (1540s). That of "cascade, waterfall" is from 1570s. Wrestling sense is from 1550s. Of a city under siege, etc. 1580s. Fall guy is from 1906.
c.1200, "a falling;" see fall (n.). Old English noun form, fealle. meant "snare, trap." Sense of "autumn" (now only in U.S.) is 1660s, short for fall of the leaf (1540s). That of "cascade, waterfall" is from 1570s. Wrestling sense is from 1550s. Of a city under siege, etc. 1580s. Fall guy is from 1906.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang definitions & phrases for falling Expand
: This your first fall, ain't it?/ Another fall meant a life sentence(1893+)
- To be arrested; be imprisoned; drop : When you have bad luck and you fall, New York is the best place/ the best thief in the city till he fell(1879+ Underworld)
- o become enamored; become a lover: Once Abelard saw her he fell(1906+)
The Dictionary of American Slang, Fourth Edition by Barbara Ann Kipfer, PhD. and Robert L. Chapman, Ph.D.
Copyright (C) 2007 by HarperCollins Publishers.
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Idioms and Phrases with falling Expand