- past participle of fall.
fallen
Americanverb
adjective
-
having dropped or come down from a higher place, from an upright position, or from a higher level, degree, amount, quality, value, number, etc.
-
on the ground; prostrate; down flat.
Exhausted, the racers lay fallen by the road.
-
degraded or immoral.
-
(of a woman) having lost her chastity.
-
overthrown, destroyed, or conquered.
a fallen city.
-
dead.
fallen troops.
verb
adjective
-
having sunk in reputation or honour
a fallen woman
-
killed in battle with glory
our fallen heroes
-
defeated
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fallen
First recorded before 900, for the adjective
Explanation
Something that's fallen has dropped to the ground. You might collect fallen apples to make into cider or applesauce. The most literal sense of something fallen is just what it sounds like — an object that's moved from a high place to a lower place, usually due to gravity. There are also some figurative meanings: a fallen soldier has died on the battlefield, and a fallen person has committed a moral sin or ruined his reputation. In the 17th century, fallen frequently meant "morally ruined," more often describing a women than a man.
Vocabulary lists containing fallen
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 8
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The New SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words
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The ACT Reading Test: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 8
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Jensen Huang said he took "full responsibility" for what he did, and said he had fallen short of his responsibilities to Nvidia's employees, board and shareholders.
From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2026
The firm, which listed in Hong Kong in 2020, is worth nearly $24bn and remains one of the world's most valuable toymakers, despite its shares having fallen by more than 50% from last year's peak.
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
Wine-club sales add almost another third of total revenue—about $1 million—but membership has fallen to around 2,100 or 2,200, versus a peak of 2,600 during the pandemic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2026
"Technology shares have been affected by external risks and have fallen in tandem with their counterparts in the US, Japan and South Korea," he told AFP.
From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2026
Moose jumped easily over most of the fallen trees, and went around the others.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
