10 Phrasal Verbs With the Verb "Fall"

The verb "fall" by itself is used in many different ways, such as:

• when something suddenly goes down onto the ground by accident (Example: I broke my ankle when I fell from the tree.)
• to describe a decrease in size, amount, or strength (Example: The forecast said that temperatures could fall below -20 degrees tonight.)
• to belong to a particular group, subject, area or type of things (Example: Our products fall into three broad categories.)

​So you can imagine that this verb gets even more complicated when paired with a variety of particles and used as a phrasal verb such as in the list below.

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1. Fall apart: To disintegrate or break into pieces.

• The old train eventually fell apart after it was left to the elements.​

This phrasal verb can also be used figuratively to describe when people break down or lose control of their emotions:

• She fell apart after the doctor told her that the patient will never be able to recover.
• The band Sugar Ray has a song from around 1999 titled "Falls Apart" that goes: "She falls apart / By herself / No one there to talk or understand."

2. Fall down: To collapse or fall to the ground.

• He tripped and fell down the stairs.
• The picture frame fell down and broke because the cat pushed it over the edge.

3. Fall for: To be deceived or tricked by someone or something.

• ​She fell for his charming words.
• Don't fall for that "special-price-today-only" trick of their sales people.

4. Fall in: To collapse inward or cave in.

• The roof of the old stadium fell in after a night of heavy snow.
• Thankfully, no one was in the building when the ceiling fell in. ​

5. Fall off: To decrease in quantity or quality.

• Sales really fell off during the pandemic, but we seem to be on the way to recovering this year.​ ​
• Her energy started to fall off halfway through the marathon.

6. Fall out: To have a disagreement or argument with someone which ends the relationship.

• The organizers fell out with the sponsor over a misunderstanding about costs for the event.
• He fell out with his parents over his decision to study Biology, since they had wanted him to study Law.
• They fell out after arguing about politics.​

7. Fall over: To lose balance and tip or roll over.

• The sculpture fell over and shattered.
• Strong winds caused the sign to fall over and block the street.

8. Fall through: To fail to happen or materialize as planned.

• Our vacation plans to California fell through after we heard about the wildfires.
• The deal fell through when the vendor changed his mind and increased the price by 30%.

9. Fall under: To be categorized or included in a particular group or classification.

• These products fall under the luxury category.
• All the expenses for advertising and social media promotion will fall under the marketing budget.

10. Fall back on: To resort to something as a backup or alternative plan.

• When his first idea failed, he had to fall back on his second plan.
• Experts advice that we should always have emergency funds to fall back on in case we suddenly lose our jobs.