Headway Word of the Week
⇒ Learn more words in the Word of the Week archive
drop
Drop generally means to let fall or let go, either deliberately or by accident.- Jack deliberately dropped the plate onto his sister's head from the top of the stairs.
- The waiter dropped the tray and all the plates broke.
It is often used with a metaphorical meaning.
- The player played very badly, so the coach dropped him for the next match.
Check out things that we can drop
- You can drop a name into a conversation if you want people to think you know famous people (you're a name-dropper, and lots of people like name-dropping).
- If you accidentally say something to upset or embarrass people then you drop a clanger.
- You might drop your eyes if you feel embarrassed.
(= avoid looking at someone)
- You can drop the subject if you don't want to talk about something any more.
- If it's your birthday, and you want your friends
to remember, you can always drop a hint.
(= say something to remind them, but indirectly)
- If you send a short letter to a friend then you drop them a line.
- If you really want a change you can drop everything and go on holiday.
Check out some things that drop
- The price of gold dropped.
(= fell in price, probably quite quickly) - She looked confused for a while, but then the
penny dropped.
(= she suddenly understood) - His jaw dropped.
(= he was open-mouthed with amazement)
Check out phrasal verbs
- Drop me off at the corner, please.
(= let me out of the car there) - It was really embarrassing when I dropped off
in the middle of the lesson.
(= fell asleep) - I'll drop by/round on my way home.
(= visit for a short time) - My daughter has dropped out of college.
(= left without finishing her studies)
Check out related words
- fall
- release
- collapse
- dive
- decrease
⇒ Learn more words in the Word of the Week archive