down
down pay|ment (down payments)
also downpayment
[N-COUNT]
If you make a down payment on something, you pay only a percentage of the total cost when you buy it. You then finish paying for it later, usually by paying a certain amount every month.
= depositdown un|der
[PHRASE] prep PHR, PHR after v
People sometimes refer to Australia and New Zealand as down under. (mainly BRIT INFORMAL)
For summer skiing down under, there is no better place than New Zealand.♦♦♦ down1 /d'aʊn/ (down) PREPOSITION AND ADVERB USES
Down is often used with verbs of movement, such as `fall' and `pull', and also in phrasal verbs such as `bring down' and `calm down'.
Please look at category 15 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 [PREP]
To go down something such as a slope or a pipe means to go towards the ground or to a lower level.
We're going down a mountain...
A man came down the stairs to meet them...
The tears began flooding down her cheeks.
≠ up
[ADV] ADV after v
Down is also an adverb.
She went down to the kitchen again...
She sat on the window seat until they climbed down from the roof...
2 [PREP] amount PREP n
If you are a particular distance down something, you are that distance below the top or surface of it.
He managed to cling on to a ledge 40ft down the rock face...
≠ up
[ADV] amount ADV
Down is also an adverb.
For the last 18 months miners have cut a face to develop a new shaft 400 metres down.
3 [ADV] ADV after v
You use down to say that you are looking or facing in a direction that is towards the ground or towards a lower level.
She was still looking down at her papers...
She put her head down, her hands over her face...
≠ up
4 [ADV] ADV after v
If you put something down, you put it onto a surface.
Danny put down his glass...
5 [PREP] oft amount PREP n
If you go or look down something such as a road or river, you go or look along it. If you are down a road or river, you are somewhere along it.
They set off at a jog up one street and down another...
...sailing down the river on a barge.
≠ up
6 [ADV] ADV after v
If you are travelling to a particular place, you can say that you are going down to that place, especially if you are going towards the south or to a lower level of land. (SPOKEN)
I went down to L.A. all the way from Seattle...
7 [ADV] ADV after v, be ADV, oft ADV to/from/by amount
If an amount of something goes down, it decreases. If an amount of something is down, it has decreased and is at a lower level than it was.
Interest rates came down today...
Inflation will be down to three percent...
My department had a healthy interest in keeping expenses down...
The Dow Jones industrial average is down 5 points at 2,913.
≠ up
8 [PHRASE] PHR with amount
If you say that there are a number of things down and a number to go, you are saying how many of the things have already been dealt with and how many remain to be dealt with.
Thirteen months down, twenty-four years to go.
9 [PREP-PHRASE]
Down to a particular detail means including everything, even that detail. Down to a particular person means including everyone, even that person.
...from the chairman right down to the tea ladies.
10 [PREP-PHRASE] PREP amount
If you are down to a certain amount of something, you have only that amount left.
The poor man's down to his last £3.
11 [PREP-PHRASE]
If a situation is down to a particular person or thing, it has been caused by that person or thing. (mainly BRIT)
Any mistakes are entirely down to us...
12 [PREP-PHRASE]
If someone or something is down for a particular thing, it has been arranged that they will do that thing, or that thing will happen.
Mark had told me that he was down for an interview.
13 [PREP-PHRASE]
If you pay money down on something, you pay part of the money you owe for it. (mainly AM)
He paid 20 percent down.
see also put down
14 [PHRASE] PHR n
If people shout `down with' something or someone, they are saying that they dislike them and want to get rid of them. (SPOKEN)
Demonstrators chanted `down with the rebels'.
15
up and down: see up
ups and downs: see updown2 /d'aʊn/ (down) ADJECTIVE USES
1 [ADJ] v-link ADJ
If you are feeling down, you are feeling unhappy or depressed. (INFORMAL)
The old man sounded really down.
= low
2 [ADJ] v-link ADJ, usu ADJ on n
If something is down on paper, it has been written on the paper.
That date wasn't down on our news sheet.
3 [ADJ] v-link ADJ
If a piece of equipment, especially a computer system, is down, it is temporarily not working because of a fault. Compare up.
The computer's down again.down3 /d'aʊn/ (down downs downing downed) VERB USES
Please look at category 3 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 [VERB] V n
If you say that someone downs food or a drink, you mean that they eat or drink it.
We downed bottles of local wine.
= consume
2 [VERB] be V-ed
If something or someone is downed, they fall to the ground because they have been hurt or damaged in some way. (JOURNALISM)
Two jet fighters were downed...
● downing [N-UNCOUNT]
...the downing of an airliner, which killed 107 people.
3
to down tools: see tooldown4 /d'aʊn/ (down) NOUN USES
1 [N-UNCOUNT]
Down consists of the small, soft feathers on young birds. Down is used to make bed-covers and pillows.
...goose down.
2 [N-UNCOUNT]
Down is very fine hair.
The whole plant is covered with fine down.
see also downs
also downpayment
[N-COUNT]
If you make a down payment on something, you pay only a percentage of the total cost when you buy it. You then finish paying for it later, usually by paying a certain amount every month.
= depositdown un|der
[PHRASE] prep PHR, PHR after v
People sometimes refer to Australia and New Zealand as down under. (mainly BRIT INFORMAL)
For summer skiing down under, there is no better place than New Zealand.♦♦♦ down1 /d'aʊn/ (down) PREPOSITION AND ADVERB USES
Down is often used with verbs of movement, such as `fall' and `pull', and also in phrasal verbs such as `bring down' and `calm down'.
Please look at category 15 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 [PREP]
To go down something such as a slope or a pipe means to go towards the ground or to a lower level.
We're going down a mountain...
A man came down the stairs to meet them...
The tears began flooding down her cheeks.
≠ up
[ADV] ADV after v
Down is also an adverb.
She went down to the kitchen again...
She sat on the window seat until they climbed down from the roof...
2 [PREP] amount PREP n
If you are a particular distance down something, you are that distance below the top or surface of it.
He managed to cling on to a ledge 40ft down the rock face...
≠ up
[ADV] amount ADV
Down is also an adverb.
For the last 18 months miners have cut a face to develop a new shaft 400 metres down.
3 [ADV] ADV after v
You use down to say that you are looking or facing in a direction that is towards the ground or towards a lower level.
She was still looking down at her papers...
She put her head down, her hands over her face...
≠ up
4 [ADV] ADV after v
If you put something down, you put it onto a surface.
Danny put down his glass...
5 [PREP] oft amount PREP n
If you go or look down something such as a road or river, you go or look along it. If you are down a road or river, you are somewhere along it.
They set off at a jog up one street and down another...
...sailing down the river on a barge.
≠ up
6 [ADV] ADV after v
If you are travelling to a particular place, you can say that you are going down to that place, especially if you are going towards the south or to a lower level of land. (SPOKEN)
I went down to L.A. all the way from Seattle...
7 [ADV] ADV after v, be ADV, oft ADV to/from/by amount
If an amount of something goes down, it decreases. If an amount of something is down, it has decreased and is at a lower level than it was.
Interest rates came down today...
Inflation will be down to three percent...
My department had a healthy interest in keeping expenses down...
The Dow Jones industrial average is down 5 points at 2,913.
≠ up
8 [PHRASE] PHR with amount
If you say that there are a number of things down and a number to go, you are saying how many of the things have already been dealt with and how many remain to be dealt with.
Thirteen months down, twenty-four years to go.
9 [PREP-PHRASE]
Down to a particular detail means including everything, even that detail. Down to a particular person means including everyone, even that person.
...from the chairman right down to the tea ladies.
10 [PREP-PHRASE] PREP amount
If you are down to a certain amount of something, you have only that amount left.
The poor man's down to his last £3.
11 [PREP-PHRASE]
If a situation is down to a particular person or thing, it has been caused by that person or thing. (mainly BRIT)
Any mistakes are entirely down to us...
12 [PREP-PHRASE]
If someone or something is down for a particular thing, it has been arranged that they will do that thing, or that thing will happen.
Mark had told me that he was down for an interview.
13 [PREP-PHRASE]
If you pay money down on something, you pay part of the money you owe for it. (mainly AM)
He paid 20 percent down.
see also put down
14 [PHRASE] PHR n
If people shout `down with' something or someone, they are saying that they dislike them and want to get rid of them. (SPOKEN)
Demonstrators chanted `down with the rebels'.
15
up and down: see up
ups and downs: see updown2 /d'aʊn/ (down) ADJECTIVE USES
1 [ADJ] v-link ADJ
If you are feeling down, you are feeling unhappy or depressed. (INFORMAL)
The old man sounded really down.
= low
2 [ADJ] v-link ADJ, usu ADJ on n
If something is down on paper, it has been written on the paper.
That date wasn't down on our news sheet.
3 [ADJ] v-link ADJ
If a piece of equipment, especially a computer system, is down, it is temporarily not working because of a fault. Compare up.
The computer's down again.down3 /d'aʊn/ (down downs downing downed) VERB USES
Please look at category 3 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 [VERB] V n
If you say that someone downs food or a drink, you mean that they eat or drink it.
We downed bottles of local wine.
= consume
2 [VERB] be V-ed
If something or someone is downed, they fall to the ground because they have been hurt or damaged in some way. (JOURNALISM)
Two jet fighters were downed...
● downing [N-UNCOUNT]
...the downing of an airliner, which killed 107 people.
3
to down tools: see tooldown4 /d'aʊn/ (down) NOUN USES
1 [N-UNCOUNT]
Down consists of the small, soft feathers on young birds. Down is used to make bed-covers and pillows.
...goose down.
2 [N-UNCOUNT]
Down is very fine hair.
The whole plant is covered with fine down.
see also downs