The word come and the word down are two of the most recognizable words in the English language.
As a stand-alone word, even with no other words, we know what is meant. For example, if we are out with our kids and we want them to follow us, we simply have to say “come!” and they know what we mean.
If our kids are climbing on a tree or something they are not supposed to all we have to say is “down!”
The word come originates from the old English word “cuman” (13th Century) which means to arrive or assemble. Eventually, some changes were adopted by the word and it eventually became know as we know it today as come.
The word down is also an old English word that originated from “ofdune” which means downward and eventually adapted to its present form “down” and has been used as a preposition since about the 15 centuries.
These two words were a match made in heaven and have produced several phrasal verbs “offspring”.
COME DOWN Synonyms (other ways to say):
Collapse, crash, deflation, flop, humiliation, setback, demoralization, humiliation, shame, breakdown.
1. Meaning of Come Down: (endure, run on, linger)
One meaning we use this phrasal verb is to express something to continue to exist for a long time ago.
Example 1: The recipe comes down from my great great grandmother.
Example 2: The land comes down from when my family first settled the land about 200 years ago.
Dialog:
Jenney: Hey Alex, what a beautiful vase.
Alex: Yeah it has come down from generation to generation in our family.
Jenny: Wow, and I guess the same thing with that antique chair, it has come down from your ancestors?
Alex: Nope. Haha. That came down from Pottery Barn.
2. Meaning of Come Down:
When we talk about something (airplane, building, rain or snow) falls to the ground or goes to a lower level.
Example 1: The weather balloon came down and hit a car, fortunately, no one was hurt.
Example 2: The gargoyle was old and crumbling and came down from the building after a minor earthquake.
Example 3: Hey I am stuck in Toronto; the snow is really coming down and many flights have been canceled.
Example 4: You come down from that tree right now young man!
Dialog:
Frank: Hey did you hear about that plane coming down today?
Phoebe: No, I didn’t. Wait a minute I am going to come down to your apartment, I can’t hear you from up hear.
Frank: Hey, ok. So, I guess the rain was really coming down and the plane came down just outside of NYC.
Phoebe: Oh my gosh. That’s terrible.
3. Meaning of Come Down: (go tits up, fall flounder)
We can also use this phrase to indicate that someone has lost status, power and influential.
Example 1: That tycoon, has really come down in the world after he lost most of his fortune in the latest market crash.
Example 2: That company has really come down in the phone industry, it just did not have any innovation.
Dialog:
Emily: Hey Ringo, are you still working at Fringle Co. I heard they are really coming down in the world?
Ringo: No, I am working for HowU now. I have taken a pay cut and have really come down in the world now.
Emily: Well I think the whole country has come down because of the financial crisis.
Ringo: Yeah, I guess sometimes you have to come down to go back up again.
4. Meaning of Come Down:
We can also use come down when we want to express something to become less in amount, level, price etc.
Example 1: We will need to come down in price if we want to increase our market share.
Example 2: I am going to wait and buy the new XPhone to come down in price.
Dialog:
Steve: Bill, I have looked at your proposal and we will need you to come down in price.
Bill: Hmmm, we have already come down in the price as well as the warranty period.
Steve: I get that Bill, we would like to see the price of the unit come down at least for the first 100,00 units and then we can negotiate again for further units.
Bill: Ok Steve, we are we are willing to come down another 10 % with the understanding that we will see a change in the following year.
5. Meaning of Come Down:
We can use a phrasal verb to say that someone or something is going from a larger place or a place that is more North than or considered more important.
Example 1: My kids are coming down for the weekend.
Example 2: The team from head office are coming down for a meeting.
Dialog:
Claudia: Hi Martin, I wanted to invite you and your family to come down to our place.
Martin: Hi Claudia. Wow, Thanks! We haven’t been to Florida in a long time.
Claudia: Yes, the last time you came down from NYC it was 2 years ago.
Martin: Yeah. That’s right. When we were there, your brother also came down from Chicago.
Claudia: Yes, he comes down quite often, especially in the winter.
Martin: Will he be coming down while we are there?
Claudia: He cannot come down. He was asked to come down, but can’t as his boss asked him to come down to California the same week.
Martin: OK, great I will let you know when we will be able to come down.
6. Meaning of Come Down:
When can use come down to also express something to be long enough to reach the level or certain point.
Example 1: The curtains come down to the bottom of the window, they are perfect!
Example 2: His hair comes down to his ass, and his pants come down to bellow his ass. Teenagers!
Dialog:
Veronica: Eduardo, the picture comes down to far, can you help me raise it up?
Eduardo: What do you mean, I don’t think it comes down to far, I think it is at a good level. If it comes down much more it will be too low.
Veronica: That’s because you are taller. You don’t live here, I do and I need it to come down another couple of inches.
Eduardo: OK. Well if bring this picture down, the pictures will need to come down the same amount or they will not look even.
Veronica: OK. That’s fine. The other pictures can come down another 2 inches as well.
7. Meaning of Come Down:
When we make a decision that supports the opposite of something we also use come down.
Example 1: The decision of the merger will need to come down from the board.
Example 2: The decision of his guilt or innocence will be coming down any time now.
Dialog:
Jenny: Hey Jethro, have you heard when the CEO will be coming down with his decision?
Jethro: Frank from accounting said he will be coming down with this decision already.
Jenny: Really? What side did he come down on? For the merger or against?
Jethro: Well, the rumor is he came down on the side in favor of the merger.
8. Meaning of Come Down:
In an informal context, come down can express someone feeling normal again after experience being high from the effects of a drug.
Example 1: I just got back from the dentist and just now coming down from the effects of the anesthetic drugs he gave me.
Example 2: Ohh man that concert was fantastic. I am just coming down from smoking that weed. I’m hungry!
Dialog:
Wayne: Hey Brian, your dog looks a little spaced out.
Brian: Hey Wayne. Yeah, I was at the vet with him and the Vet had to sedate him. He is just starting to come down I think.
Wayne: Geez, poor thing. I haven’t come down from a high in a long time.
Brian: Yeah, I remember we use to get high and then when we came down we use to raid your mom’s cookie jar.
Wayne: Yeah, I always use to get so hungry when I came down from smoking weed.
Brian: We will have to come down together again soon!
9. Meaning of Come Down:
We can use come down in the context of expressing a lower opinion or to respect something or someone less than you did before.
Example 1: My respect for my boss has come down ever since his decision to merge with the ABC company.
Example 2: Your expectations need to come down as things have changed.
Dialog:
Bob: Hi Ryan. Have you heard about the decision the government came down with regarding the tax reform?
Ryan: Yeah. My opinion has really come down about them.
Bob: I can understand that. My expectations have come down a long time ago regarding politicians.
Other words you can create: noun, verb, adjective, adverb, etc. (ex: mug – mugger)
Collocations with COME DOWN
Related Phrasal Verbs
Bring Down – We use this phrase in the context of come down to express something or someone falling to the ground.
- No one thought that the little boxer could bring down the champion, but that all changed with the champ came down hard into the mat and never got back up.
Fall out – when something becomes detached and drops out of someplace or something.
- The bird fell out of the tree and came down onto the car.
Beat down (rain falling) – in the context of coming down, we use this to refer to rain falling down heavily and hard/
- The rain came down from the sky beating down on our umbrellas.
Drop away – we use this to express something or someone falling or going away gradually.
- The sales are dropping down and coming down below last year’s levels.
Seep away – this is a phrase we use to describe something or someone gradually become weaker or disappear.
- His reputation has seeped away and my opinion has come down about him.
Arrive at (decision) – we use this phrase describe someone who makes a decision after some careful deliberation.
- The judged has arrived at a decision and will be coming down with his judgment in 2 hours.
Go down in someone’s opinion – we use this to describe when what we think of someone decreases.
- He has really gone down in the professor’s opinion and has come down in his academic ranking as a result.
Cave in – in the context of come down, we use this phrase to describe something that has collapsed from the inside, and implosion.
- The building caved in just before it came down.
Give way – if something gives way, it breaks or falls down because it is not strong enough to hold the weight of something or someone.
- The cheerleader on the top of the pyramid was to heavy and the legs of the other cheerleaders gave way and they all came down on top of one another.
Come Down Related idioms:
Fall flat on your face – we use this to describe someone to fall forward so that you are laying on your front and it can also be used to describe when someone fails completely and usually in an embarrassing way.
Hit the deck – in this context of coming down, we use this to describe when someone needs to get out of the way of harm quickly.
Go through the floor – this is a phrase that is used to describe prices going down significantly.
Nosedive – sharp and quick decline.
Make up your mind – in the context of coming down, we use this to describe someone making a decision after long and sometimes too long consideration.
Lose face – when we use this phrase in the context of come down, it is meant to describe a situation where someone loses the respect of others or is embarrassed and humiliated.
Fall from grace – this is an idiom we use to describe a situation when a person or group of people lose status, respect, and prestige.
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