let down

British  

verb

1. (also preposition) to lower

2. to fail to fulfil the expectations of (a person); disappoint

3. to undo, shorten, and resew (the hem) so as to lengthen (a dress, skirt, etc)

4. to untie (long hair that is bound up) and allow to fall loose

5. to deflate

   to let down a tyre

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noun

1. a disappointment

2. the gliding descent of an aircraft in preparation for landing

3. the release of milk from the mammary glands following stimulation by the hormone oxytocin

let down Idioms  

1. Cause to descend, lower, as in They let down the sails . [Mid-1100s]

2. Also, let up . Slacken, abate, as in Sales are letting down in this quarter , or They didn't let up in their efforts until the end . The first term dates from the mid-1800s, the variant from the late 1700s.

3. See let someone down . Also see let one's hair down .

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Example Sentences

Let down by both the formal legal system and the collegiate disciplinary one, women have turned to protests to find some form of justice.

From US News • Dec. 9, 2014

Let down by families and local authorities alike, with a trail of failed placements and further and further from home, far too many children find themselves on the dreary, damaging route from care to custody.

From BBC • Dec. 18, 2012

Stop invoking Cinderella every March and take a page from Rapunzel: Let down your hair.

From New York Times • Apr. 1, 2010

Let down and disappointed by the world, he is in withdrawal.

From Washington Post

The third step in this service-call is this: practicality in service: "Let down your nets."

From Quiet Talks on Service by Gordon, S. D. (Samuel Dickey)