Fall and Devolution

noun

• The season when the leaves fall from the trees.
  • usage: "in the fall of 1973"
  • synonyms: autumn
• A sudden drop from an upright position.
  • usage: "he had a nasty spill on the ice"
  • synonyms: spill, tumble
• The lapse of mankind into sinfulness because of the sin of Adam and Eve.
  • usage: "women have been blamed ever since the Fall"
• A downward slope or bend.
  • synonyms: descent, declivity, decline, declination, declension, downslope
• A lapse into sin; a loss of innocence or of chastity.
  • usage: "a fall from virtue"
• A sudden decline in strength or number or importance.
  • usage: "the fall of the House of Hapsburg"
  • synonyms: downfall
• A movement downward.
  • usage: "the rise and fall of the tides"
• The act of surrendering (usually under agreed conditions. )
  • usage: "they were protected until the capitulation of the fort"
  • synonyms: capitulation, surrender
• The time of day immediately following sunset.
  • usage: "he loved the twilight"; "they finished before the fall of night"
  • synonyms: twilight, dusk, gloaming, gloam, nightfall, evenfall, crepuscule, crepuscle
• When a wrestler's shoulders are forced to the mat.
  • synonyms: pin
• A free and rapid descent by the force of gravity.
  • usage: "it was a miracle that he survived the drop from that height"
  • synonyms: drop
• A sudden sharp decrease in some quantity.
  • usage: "a drop of 57 points on the Dow Jones index"; "there was a drop in pressure in the pulmonary artery"; "a dip in prices"; "when that became known the price of their stock went into free fall"
  • synonyms: drop, dip, free fall

verb

• Descend in free fall under the influence of gravity.
  • usage: "The branch fell from the tree"; "The unfortunate hiker fell into a crevasse"
• Move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way.
  • usage: "The temperature is going down"; "The barometer is falling"; "The curtain fell on the diva"; "Her hand went up and then fell again"
  • synonyms: descend, go down, come down
• Pass suddenly and passively into a state of body or mind.
  • usage: "fall into a trap"; "She fell ill"; "They fell out of favor"; "Fall in love"; "fall asleep"; "fall prey to an imposter"; "fall into a strange way of thinking"; "she fell to pieces after she lost her work"
• Come under, be classified or included.
  • usage: "fall into a category"; "This comes under a new heading"
  • synonyms: come
• Fall from clouds.
  • usage: "rain, snow and sleet were falling"; "Vesuvius precipitated its fiery, destructive rage on Herculaneum"
  • synonyms: precipitate, come down
• Suffer defeat, failure, or ruin.
  • usage: "We must stand or fall"; "fall by the wayside"
• Die, as in battle or in a hunt.
  • usage: "Many soldiers fell at Verdun"; "Several deer have fallen to the same gun"; "The shooting victim fell dead"
• Touch or seem as if touching visually or audibly.
  • usage: "Light fell on her face"; "The sun shone on the fields"; "The light struck the golden necklace"; "A strange sound struck my ears"
  • synonyms: shine, strike
• Be captured.
  • usage: "The cities fell to the enemy"
• Occur at a specified time or place.
  • usage: "Christmas falls on a Monday this year"; "The accent falls on the first syllable"
• Decrease in size, extent, or range.
  • usage: "The amount of homework decreased towards the end of the semester"; "The cabin pressure fell dramatically"; "her weight fell to under a hundred pounds"; "his voice fell to a whisper"
  • synonyms: decrease, diminish, lessen
• Yield to temptation or sin.
  • usage: "Adam and Eve fell"
• Lose office or power.
  • usage: "The government fell overnight"; "The Qing Dynasty fell with Sun Yat-sen"
• To be given by assignment or distribution.
  • usage: "The most difficult task fell on the youngest member of the team"; "The onus fell on us"; "The pressure to succeed fell on the youngest student"
• Move in a specified direction.
  • usage: "The line of men fall forward"
• Be due.
  • usage: "payments fall on the 1st of the month"
• Lose one's chastity.
  • usage: "a fallen woman"
• To be given by right or inheritance.
  • usage: "The estate fell to the oldest daughter"
• Come into the possession of.
  • usage: "The house accrued to the oldest son"
  • synonyms: accrue
• Fall to somebody by assignment or lot.
  • usage: "The task fell to me"; "It fell to me to notify the parents of the victims"
  • synonyms: light
• Be inherited by.
  • usage: "The estate fell to my sister"; "The land returned to the family"; "The estate devolved to an heir that everybody had assumed to be dead"
  • synonyms: return, pass, devolve
• Slope downward.
  • usage: "The hills around here fall towards the ocean"
• Lose an upright position suddenly.
  • usage: "The vase fell over and the water spilled onto the table"; "Her hair fell across her forehead"
  • synonyms: fall down
• Drop oneself to a lower or less erect position.
  • usage: "She fell back in her chair"; "He fell to his knees"
• Fall or flow in a certain way.
  • usage: "This dress hangs well"; "Her long black hair flowed down her back"
  • synonyms: hang, flow
• Assume a disappointed or sad expression.
  • usage: "Her face fell when she heard that she would be laid off"; "his crest fell"
• Be cast down.
  • usage: "his eyes fell"
• Come out; issue.
  • usage: "silly phrases fell from her mouth"
• Be born, used chiefly of lambs.
  • usage: "The lambs fell in the afternoon"
• Begin vigorously.
  • usage: "The prisoners fell to work right away"
• Go as if by falling.
  • usage: "Grief fell from our hearts"
• Come as if by falling.
  • usage: "Night fell"; "Silence fell"
  • synonyms: descend, settle

• (v.t.) To find a final outlet; to discharge its waters; to empty; -- with into; as, the river Rhone falls into the Mediterranean.
• (v.t.) To diminish; to lessen or lower.
• (v.t.) To begin with haste, ardor or vehemence; to rush or hurry; as, they fell to blows.
• (n.) The surrender of a besieged fortress or town; as, the fall of Sebastopol.
• (v.t.) To Descend, either suddenly or gradually; particularly, to descend by the force of gravity; to drop; to sink; as, the apple falls; the tide falls; the mercury falls in the barometer.
• (n.) That part (as one of the ropes) of a tackle to which the power is applied in hoisting.
• (v.t.) To become insnared or embarrassed; to be entrapped; to be worse off than before; asm to fall into error; to fall into difficulties.
• (v.t.) To assume a look of shame or disappointment; to become or appear dejected; -- said of the countenance.
• (v.t.) To pass somewhat suddenly, and passively, into a new state of body or mind; to become; as, to fall asleep; to fall into a passion; to fall in love; to fall into temptation.
• (v.t.) To come; to occur; to arrive.
• (n.) The discharge of a river or current of water into the ocean or into a lake or pond; as, the fall of the Po into the Gulf of Venice.
• (n.) Diminution or decrease in price or value; depreciation; as, the fall of prices; the fall of rents.
• (v.t.) To become prostrate and dead; to die; especially, to die by violence, as in battle.
• (n.) The act of dropping or tumbling from an erect posture; as, he was walking on ice, and had a fall.
• (v.t.) To decline in power, glory, wealth or importance; to become insignificant; to lose rank or position; to decline in weight, value, price etc.; to become less; as, the falls; stocks fell two points.
• (n.) That which falls; a falling; as, a fall of rain; a heavy fall of snow.
• (v.t.) To be dropped or uttered carelessly; as, an unguarded expression fell from his lips; not a murmur fell from him.
• (v.t.) To pass or be transferred by chance, lot, distribution, inheritance or otherwise; as, the estate fell to his brother; the kingdom fell into the hands of his rivals.
• (v.t.) To let fall; to drop.
• (n.) The season when leaves fall from trees; autumn.
• (v.t.) To fell; to cut down; as, to fall a tree.
• (v.t.) To happen; to to come to pass; to light; to befall; to issue; to terminate.
• (n.) Downfall; degradation; loss of greatness or office; termination of greatness, power or dominion; ruin; overthrow; as, the fall of the Roman empire.
• (v.t.) To cease to be erect; to take suddenly a recumbent posture; to become prostrate; to drop; as, a child totters and falls; a tree falls; a worshiper falls on his knees.
• (n.) Death; destruction; overthrow; ruin.
• (v.t.) To be overthrown or captured; to be destroyed.
• (n.) Descent of water; a cascade; a cataract; a rush of water down a precipice or steep; -- usually in the plural, sometimes in the singular; as, the falls of Niagara.
• (v.t.) To descend in character or reputation; to become degraded; to sink into vice, error or sin; to depart from the faith; to apostatize; to sin.
• (n.) The act of falling; a dropping or descending be the force of gravity; descent; as, a fall from a horse or from the yard of ship.
• (v.t.) To belong or appertain.
• (v.t.) To issue forth into life; to be brought forth; -- said of the young of certain animals.
• (v.t.) To cease to be active or strong; to die away; to lose strength; to subside; to become less intense; as, the wind falls.
• (v.t.) To sink; to depress; as, to fall the voice.
• (n.) Formerly, a kind of ruff or band for the neck; a falling band; a faule.
• (v.t.) To bring forth; as, to fall lambs.
• (v.t.) To sink; to languish; to become feeble or faint; as, our spirits rise and fall with our fortunes.
• (n.) A sinking of tone; cadence; as, the fall of the voice at the close of a sentence.
• (n.) Lapse or declension from innocence or goodness. Specifically: The first apostasy; the act of our first parents in eating the forbidden fruit; also, the apostasy of the rebellious angels.
• (n.) Extent of descent; the distance which anything falls; as, the water of a stream has a fall of five feet.
• (n.) Declivity; the descent of land or a hill; a slope.
• (n.) The act of felling or cutting down.

noun

• The process of declining from a higher to a lower level of effective power or vitality or essential quality.
  • synonyms: degeneration
• The delegation of authority (especially from a central to a regional government. ).
  • synonyms: devolvement

• (n.) The act of rolling down.
• (n.) Transference from one person to another; a passing or devolving upon a successor.

DEVOLUTION is the delegation of authority from higher to lower levels.