topple
Americanverb (used without object)
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topples,
present (3rd person singular)
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toppled,
past participle, past
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toppling
present participle
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to fall forward, as from having too heavy a top; pitch; tumble down.
-
to lean over or jut, as if threatening to fall.
verb
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to tip over or cause to tip over, esp from a height
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(intr) to lean precariously or totter
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(tr) to overthrow; oust
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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topplesimple
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topplessimple
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have toppledperfect
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has toppledperfect
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am topplingprogressive
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are topplingprogressive
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is topplingprogressive
-
have been topplingperfect progressive
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has been topplingperfect progressive
Past
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toppledsimple
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had toppledperfect
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was topplingprogressive
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were topplingprogressive
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had been topplingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of topple
Explanation
To topple something is to knock it down. A house of cards can be toppled — so can a government. Things can topple in several ways. If a building collapses or falls down for any reason, it topples. If you knocked over another student, you toppled that person. Governments that are overthrown are also said to be toppled. When you see the word topple, someone or something is going down.
Vocabulary lists containing topple
100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
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"Sorry, Wrong Number," Vocabulary from the play
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The War That Saved My Life
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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.
See Examples For:
European football looks like an outlier, struggling to gain enough support to topple him.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
NHK aired footage from elsewhere in the southwestern Kumamoto region on Kyushu island showing several blazes, damaged bridges, a derailed cargo train and a number of houses threatening to topple over.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
James is every ambitious director threatening to topple this town in a narcissistic quest to create the ultimate special effects epic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
Another flaw: “soft-story” buildings, where the ground floor is flimsier than the upper floors, making it easier for it to topple in a quake.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026
With Vivi, I feel forever doomed to be the little sister, foolish and about to topple over onto my face.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
At another dance, he gets his spurs entangled in his partner’s skirts and topples to the floor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
The clash with Stanley that topples Blanche’s mind after Stella has gone into labor is just as freshly conceived.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2025
It topples over, it knocks the next one over and the next one over, and it all goes really quickly.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2023
You look so shocked when a dog topples your precious kid over!
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 18, 2023
As the icebergs drift, the seawater erodes them from below, until the berg abruptly topples over and continues its journey upside down.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
That figure toppled the number of cases reported in all of 2025, and some public health experts believe it may be an undercount.
From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026
But the August 26 disaster also came just ahead of the anniversary of last year's September 8-9 youth-driven anti-corruption protests that toppled the previous government.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
Remember: Alcaraz is the defending champ in Queens, having toppled Sinner in four sets last September.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Four years later, veteran Bay Area Rep. Mike Honda was toppled by fellow Democrat Ro Khanna, now viewed as a potential 2028 presidential candidate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
“I see three toppled cars and a big gap down the middle of the street, like somebody opened a giant zipper.”
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
Saturday's celebrations mark the 115th anniversary of the toppling of China's Qing dynasty and the subsequent founding of the Republic of China.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026
Olivia Dean speaks about obliterating a record held by Abba, toppling Jay-Z and Rihanna’s “Umbrella” and why meeting Stevie Wonder almost did her in.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
I sway to the left, then to the right, before finally toppling forward.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
They took the capital unopposed after a lightning offensive that swept across Afghanistan, toppling government forces in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of US-led troops.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
It was rather frightening, this vast sculpture of a witch and a wizard sitting on ornately carved thrones, looking down at the Ministry workers toppling out of fireplaces below them.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
