pratfall

American  

[prat-fawl] / ˈprætˌfɔl /

noun

1. a fall in which one lands on the buttocks, often regarded as comical or humiliating.

2. a humiliating blunder or defeat.

---

pratfall British  

/ ˈprætˌfɔːl /

noun

1. slang a fall upon one's buttocks

---

Etymology

Origin of pratfall

First recorded in 1935–40; prat + fall

Explanation

A pratfall is a mistake that is particularly embarrassing, like going to a job interview with stains on your shirt. It can also be a silly goof done on purpose to make people laugh, like slipping on a banana peel. A pratfall originally referred to a fall on your butt, which was often done by comic actors for laughs. From there, it came to mean all sorts of unplanned screw-ups. A restaurant caught serving horsemeat has committed a pratfall. A politician’s inappropriate joke is a verbal pratfall. A football player who runs the wrong way and scores for the other team has done a pratfall. Oops!

Example Sentences

The bet lasted barely 90 feet, as Roberts stumbled and face-planted just past second base, a pratfall which was captured on social media and celebrated by his laughing players.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 27, 2025

He went on to suggest an improvement to one of Ms. Thompson’s lines and add a little pratfall at the end, and the set brightened with laughter.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025

Zucker, who trained with the French guru Philippe Gaulier, doesn’t just pratfall and malaprop.

From New York Times • Mar. 5, 2024

I am glad my every pratfall doesn’t end up on social media.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 6, 2023

“Life becomes one big pratfall, Montag; everything bang; boff, and wow!”

From "Fahrenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury

Related Words

• decline
• decrease
• dip
• drop
• plunge
• recession
• reduction
• slump
• spill