LET DOWN

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does let down mean? 

• LET DOWN (verb)
  The verb LET DOWN has 2 senses:

1. move something or somebody to a lower position

2. fail to meet the hopes or expectations of

  Familiarity information: LET DOWN used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• LET DOWN (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Move something or somebody to a lower position

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

bring down; get down; let down; lower; take down

Context example:

take down the vase from the shelf

Hypernyms (to "let down" is one way to...):

displace; move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)

Cause:

come down; descend; fall; go down (move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "let down"):

reef (lower and bring partially inboard)

depress (lower (prices or markets))

dip (lower briefly)

incline (lower or bend (the head or upper body), as in a nod or bow)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Somebody ----s somebody PP
Somebody ----s something PP

Sense 2

Meaning:

Fail to meet the hopes or expectations of

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Synonyms:

disappoint; let down

Context example:

Her boyfriend let her down when he did not propose marriage

Hypernyms (to "let down" is one way to...):

baffle; bilk; cross; foil; frustrate; queer; scotch; spoil; thwart (hinder or prevent (the efforts, plans, or desires) of)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "let down"):

betray; fail (disappoint, prove undependable to; abandon, forsake)

come short; fall short (fail to meet (expectations or standards))

disenchant; disillusion (free from enchantment)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody

Sentence example:

The performance is likely to let down Sue

Derivation:

letdown (a feeling of dissatisfaction that results when your expectations are not realized)

 Context examples 

I had forgotten to draw my curtain, which I usually did, and also to let down my window-blind.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

Almost before I could let down the steps, my aunt sprang in, I don't know how, and the man followed.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

They arrived, the carriage turned, the step was let down, and Mr. Elton, spruce, black, and smiling, was with them instantly.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

If she would only wear rouge she would not be afraid of being seen; but last time I called, I observed the blinds were let down immediately.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

Six of the crew, of whom I was one, having let down the boat into the sea, made a shift to get clear of the ship and the rock.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

My companion let down the window, and I caught a glimpse of a low, arched doorway with a lamp burning above it.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Then Rapunzel let down the braids of her hair, and the enchantress climbed up to her.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

I was afraid they might not; and we overtook William Goulding in his curricle, so I was determined he should know it, and so I let down the side-glass next to him, and took off my glove, and let my hand just rest upon the window frame, so that he might see the ring, and then I bowed and smiled like anything.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

Oh, quite enough, cried Mr. Yates, with only just a side wing or two run up, doors in flat, and three or four scenes to be let down; nothing more would be necessary on such a plan as this.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

“Her mother let down two tucks in her frocks only last week. Such is time, you see, sir!”

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)