bring down
Britishverb
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to cause to fall
the fighter aircraft brought the enemy down
the ministers agreed to bring down the price of oil
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slang (usually passive) to cause to be elated and then suddenly depressed, as from using drugs
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Cause to fall, collapse, or die. For example, The pilot won a medal for bringing down enemy aircraft , or The bill's defeat was sure to bring down the party . [c. 1300]
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Cause a punishment or judgment, as in The bomb threats brought down the public's wrath on the terrorists [Mid-1600s]
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Reduce, lower, as in I won't buy it till they bring down the price , or He refused to bring himself down to their level . This usage may be literal, as in the first example, or figurative, as in the second. [First half of 1500s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A bust that brings down the economy isn’t my baseline.
With control of the muscles of the foot the toes may be brought down to the floor without any movement that is perceptible to the eye.
From Literature
The U.K. wants to build a fleet of smaller reactors, which could in theory bring down costs by streamlining manufacturing and construction.
The landlocked Himalayan nation of 30 million people will elect a new government on March 5, six months after youth-led demonstrations brought down the administration of Marxist leader KP Sharma Oli.
From Barron's
But bringing down prices is a tough sell to people who already own.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
