tumble

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To fall suddenly, often rolling over as you go down.

   She lost her footing and tumbled down the stairs.

2. 2
   verb

   To drop quickly and by a large amount.

   Share prices tumbled after the bad news.

3. 3
   noun

   A fall, especially one in which you roll over.

   I took a tumble down the stairs and broke my tooth.

From Middle English tumblen (“to fall over and over again, tumble”), frequentative of Middle English tumben (“to fall, leap, dance”), from Old English tumbian, from Proto-Germanic *tūmōną (“to turn, rotate”). Cognate with Middle Dutch tumelen (whence Dutch tuimelen), Middle Low German tumelen, tummelen, German taumeln and Danish tumle.

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