Phrasal verbs with fall

Here is a list of phrasal verbs beginning with fall.

Fall away

To fall away is to become less in number.

• As the night descended, the crowd began to fall away.

Fall back

To fall back is to go back or to stop moving forward.

• The enemy fell back.

Fall back on

To fall back on something is to use it when everything else has failed.

• She knew that even if her acting career failed she had her MBA degree to fall back on.

Fall behind

To fall behind is to be slower than someone else.

• The teacher asked him to bring his parents to school because he was falling behind in his schoolwork.

• His landlady asked him to vacate the house because he was behind with the rent.

Fall down / fall down on

To fall down is to fail (in).

• Don’t fall down on your job.

Fall flat

If something falls flat, it fails to produce the desired result.

• Her joke fell flat.

Fall for

To fall for something is to be deceived by it.

• He fell for her charm. (= He was deceived by her charm.)

Fall for can also mean ‘fall in love with’.

• He fell for his boss’s daughter.

Fall in with

To fall in with someone is to join them. To fall in with a plan or idea is to agree with it.

• They fell in with our suggestion.

Fall off

To fall off is to become smaller in number.

• Attendance often falls off during the winter season.

Fall on/upon

To fall on somebody is to attack them.

• The lion fell hungrily upon the deer.