DOWN Word Analysis
Explore detailed information about the word DOWN.
Analysis of DOWN
Word Structure
Length: 4 letters
Vowels (1): O
Consonants (3): D, W, N
First Letter: D
Last Letter: N
Game Points
Scrabble Points: 8
Words With Friends Points: 9
Word Pattern: D-O-W-N
Word Patterns for DOWN
Letter Distribution
Count: 1
Count: 1
Count: 1
Count: 1
Definition of DOWN
(comparable) From a higher position to a lower one; downwards.
Examples:
- "The cat jumped down from the table."
To or towards what is considered the bottom of something, irrespective of whether this is presently physically lower.
Examples:
- "Go down to the bottom of the page."
- "As I lay on my back, a pain shot down from my neck to my waist."
(comparable) At a lower or further place or position along a set path.
Examples:
- "His place is farther down the road."
- "The company was well down the path to bankruptcy."
To the south (as south is at the bottom of typical maps).
Examples:
- "I went down to Miami for a conference."
Away from the city (regardless of direction).
Examples:
- "He went down to Cavan."
- "down on the farm"
- "down to the country"
- "1722, Daniel Defoe, A Journal of the Plague Year, London: E. Nutt et al., p. 12, But then my Servant who I had intended to take down with me [i.e. from London to Bedfordshire], deceiv’d me;"
At or towards any place that is visualised as 'down' by virtue of local features or local convention, or arbitrarily, irrespective of direction or elevation change.
Examples:
- "Coordinate term: over"
- "She lives down by the park."
Forward, straight ahead.
Examples:
- "At the first intersection turn left and walk down, then turn right."
(rail transport) In the direction leading away from the principal terminus, away from milepost zero.
(UK, academia, dated) Away from Oxford or Cambridge.
Examples:
- "He's gone back down to Newcastle for Christmas."
To a subordinate or less prestigious position or rank.
Examples:
- "Smith was sent down to the minors to work on his batting."
- "After the incident, Kelly went down to Second Lieutenant."
(sports) Towards the opponent's side (in ball-sports).
So as to lessen quantity, level or intensity.
Examples:
- "You need to tone down the rhetoric."
- "Please turn the music down!"
So as to reduce size, weight or volume.
Examples:
- "Trim the stick down to a length of about twelve inches."
- "Thanks to my strict diet, I've slimmed down to eleven stone."
- "Boil the mixture down to a syrupy consistency."
From less to greater detail.
Examples:
- "This spreadsheet lets you drill down to daily or even hourly sales figures."
From a remoter or higher antiquity.
Examples:
- "These traditions have been handed down over generations."
Into a state of non-operation.
Examples:
- "The computer has been shut down."
- "They closed the shop down."
So as to secure or compress something to the floor, ground, or other (usually horizontal) surface.
Examples:
- "We need to nail down this carpet so people don't keep tripping over it."
On paper (or in a durable record).
Examples:
- "You need to write down what happened while it's still fresh in your mind."
So as to be cowed into silence.
Examples:
- "The speaker was heckled and shouted down."
- "The comedy club's audience was known for hooting down timid performers."
As a down payment.
Examples:
- "We put £100 down on a new sofa."
- "You can have it, no money down."
(crosswords, in relation to a numbered clued word) In a downwards direction; vertically.
Examples:
- "I'm stuck on 11 down."
Used with verbs to indicate that the action of the verb was carried to some state of completion, permanence, or success rather than being of indefinite duration.
Examples:
- "He closed operations. / He closed down operations."
- "He chased answers. / He chased down answers."
(sentence substitute, imperative) Get down.
Examples:
- "Down, boy! (such as to direct a dog to stand on four legs from two, or to sit from standing on four legs.)"
From the higher end to the lower of.
Examples:
- "The ball rolled down the hill."
From north to south of.
Examples:
- "We sailed down the eastern seaboard."
Towards the mouth of (a river); in the direction of flow of.
Examples:
- "In this game we float sticks down the river."
From one end to another of (in any direction); along.
Examples:
- "The bus went down the street."
- "They walked down the beach holding hands."
(colloquial) At (a given place that is seen as removed from one's present location or other point of reference).
Examples:
- "I'll see you later down the pub."
Facing downwards.
Examples:
- "Turn the cloth over so that the patterned side is down."
At a lower level than before.
Examples:
- "The stock market is down."
- "Prices are down."
(informal) Sad, unhappy, depressed, feeling low.
Examples:
- "Mary seems very down since she split up with her boyfriend."
- "Been down so long it seems like up to me"
Sick, wounded, or damaged:
(slang) In prison.
Having a lower score than an opponent.
Examples:
- "They are down by 3–0 with just 5 minutes to play."
- "He was down by a bishop and a pawn after 15 moves."
- "At 5–1 down, she produced a great comeback to win the set on a tiebreak."
(baseball, cricket, colloquial, following the noun modified) Out.
Examples:
- "Two down and one to go in the bottom of the ninth."
(colloquial, with "on") Negative about; hostile to.
Examples:
- "She's been down on clams since a bad case of food poisoning; she's lost her appetite for them."
(Canada, US, slang) Comfortable [with]; accepting [of]; okay [with].
Examples:
- "He's chill enough; he'd probably be totally down with it."
- "Asker: Are you down to hang out at the mall? / Answerer: Yeah, as long as you're down with helping me pick a phone."
- "Asker: You down? Yes or no? / Answerer: You know I'm down for whatever."
(African-American Vernacular, slang) Accepted, respected, or loyally participating in the (thug) community.
Examples:
- "What you mean, 'No'? Man, I thought you was down."
Finished (of a task); defeated or dealt with (of an opponent or obstacle); elapsed (of time). Often coupled with to go (remaining).
Examples:
- "Two down and three to go."
- "Ten minutes down and nothing's happened yet."
Thoroughly practiced, learned or memorised; mastered. (Compare down pat.)
Examples:
- "It's two weeks until opening night and our lines are still not down yet."
(obsolete) Downright; absolute; positive.
(of a tree, limb, etc) Fallen or felled.
Examples:
- "Will you please let me get two loads of down wood."
(rail transport, of a train) Travelling in the direction leading away from the principal terminus, away from milepost zero.
Examples:
- "The down train leaves at 10:05."
(transitive) To knock (someone or something) down; to cause to come down; to fell.
Examples:
- "The storm downed several old trees along the highway."
- "A single rifle shot downed the mighty beast."
(transitive) To lower; to put (something) down.
Examples:
- "The bell rang for lunch, and the workers downed their tools."
(transitive, figurative) To defeat; to overpower.
(transitive, colloquial) To disparage; to put down.
(intransitive, rare or obsolete) To go or come down; to descend.
(transitive, colloquial) To drink or swallow, especially without stopping before the vessel containing the liquid is empty.
Examples:
- "He downed an ale and ordered another."
(transitive, American football, Canadian football) To render (the ball) dead, typically by touching the ground while in possession.
Examples:
- "He downed it at the seven-yard line."
(transitive, golf, pocket billiards) To sink (a ball) into a hole or pocket.
Examples:
- "He downed two balls on the break."
A negative aspect; a downer, a downside.
Examples:
- "I love almost everything about my job. The only down is that I can't take Saturdays off."
(dated) A grudge (on someone).
A downer, depressant.
An act of swallowing an entire drink at once.
(American football) A single play, from the time the ball is snapped (the start) to the time the whistle is blown (the end) when the ball is down, or is downed.
Examples:
- "I bet after the third down, the kicker will replace the quarterback on the field."
(crosswording) A clue whose solution runs vertically in the grid.
Examples:
- "I haven't solved 12 or 13 across, but I've got most of the downs."
A downstairs room of a two-story house.
Examples:
- "She lives in a two-up two-down."
Down payment.
The lightest quark with a charge number of −¹⁄₃.
(especially Southern England, also Australia, often plural, often in place names) A hill; in England, especially a chalk hill.
Examples:
- "We went for a walk over the downs."
- "The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England."
(usually in the plural) A field, especially one used for horse racing.
(UK, chiefly in the plural) A tract of poor, sandy, undulating or hilly land near the sea, covered with fine turf which serves chiefly for the grazing of sheep.
Soft, fluffy immature feathers which grow on young birds. Used as insulating material in duvets, sleeping bags and jackets.
(botany) The pubescence of plants; the hairy crown or envelope of the seeds of certain plants, such as the thistle.
The soft hair of the face when beginning to appear.
That which is made of down, as a bed or pillow; that which affords ease and repose, like a bed of down.
(transitive) To cover, ornament, line, or stuff with down.
Words Starting With DOWN
Words Ending With DOWN
Words Containing DOWN
Words Found Within DOWN
Using DOWN in Word Games
The word "DOWN" can be valuable in various word games. Here's how you can use it effectively:
Scrabble Strategy
With a score of 8 points, "DOWN" can be particularly effective when placed on premium squares. Look for opportunities to form parallel words or extend existing words on the board.
Words With Friends Tips
Worth 9 points in Words With Friends, "DOWN" can be a strategic play. Consider saving it for triple word scores or combining it with high-scoring letters like J, Q, or Z.