Fall

Old Norse Dictionary - fall

Meaning of Old Norse word "fall" in English.

As defined by the Cleasby & Vigfusson Old Norse to English dictionary:

fall Old Norse word can mean:

fall: n., pl. föll, [common to all Teut. idioms except Goth.], a fall:—defined in law, þat er fall ef maðr styðr niðr kné eðr hendi, Grág. ii. 8, Ísl. ii. 246, Al. 76, Sd. 143: the proverb, fall er farar heill, a fall bodes a lucky journey, FmS. vi. 414 (of king Harold at Stamford-bridge), viii. 85, 403, Sverr. S.; sá er annarr orðs-kviðr at fall er farar heill, ok festir þú nú fætr í landi, Fb. i. 231, cp. Caesar’s ‘teneo te, Africa;’ falls er ván að fornu tré, Stj. 539; stirð eru gamalla manna föll; flas er falli næst, flurry is nigh falling: föll berask á e-n, one begins to reel, stagger. FaS. iii. 429; koma e-m til falls, to cause one to fall, Edda 34; reiddi hann til falls, he reeled, Eb. 220. 2. a fall, death in battle, Lat. caedes, FmS. i. 11, 43, 89, Nj. 280, Eg. 37, 106, Ó. H. 219, passim; the proverb, í flótta er fall vest, FmS. viii. 117; val-fall, Lat. strages; mann-fall, loss of men in battle.

fall: β. the ‘fall,’ a plague in cattle or beasts, murrain, 655. 2, BS. i. 97, 245, 456.

fall: γ. the carcase of a slaughtered animal; baulu-fall, sauðar-fall, nauts-fall, hrúts-fall, Stj. 483.

fall: 3. medic. in compds, brot-fall, the falling sickness, epilepsy; blóð-fall, klæða-föll, bloody flux; lima-fall, paresis.

fall: β. childbirth, in the phrase, vera komin að falli, to be in an advanced state, (komin að burði is used of sheep, cowS.)

fall: 4. the fall or rush of water; vatns-fall, a waterfall, large river; sjávar-föll, tides; að-fall, flood-tide; út-fall, ebb-tide; boða-fall, a breaker, cp. BS. ii. 51.

fall: 5. in gramm. a case, Lat. casus, Skálda 180, 206: quantity, 159, 160, Edda 126: a metric. fault, a defective verse, dropping of syllables, Fb. iii. 426.

fall: II. metaph. downfall, ruin, decay; fall engla, the fall of the angels, Rb. 80; til falls ok upprisu margra í Ísrael, Luke ii. 34; hafa sér e-t til falls, to run risk of ruin, Hrafn. 30; gózin eru at falli komin, the estates are dilapidated, Mar.; á-fall, a shock; frá-fall, death; ó-fall, mishap; jarð-fall, an earth-slip.

fall: 2. eccl. a sin, transgression, BS. i. 686, Mar. 77 (Fr.)

fall: 3. a law term, breach, failure, non-fulfilment, in eið-fall, vegar-fall, Gþl. 416; messu-fall, orð-fall, veizlu-fall.

fall: 4. mod. a case, occasion.

Possible runic inscription in Younger Futhark:ᚠᛅᛚᛚ
Younger Futhark runes were used from 8th to 12th centuries in Scandinavia and their overseas settlements

Abbreviations used:

cp.: compare.

Goth.: Gothic.

l.: line.

Lat.: Latin.

n.: neuter.

pl.: plural.

S.: Saga.

Teut.: Teutonic.

medic.: medicine, medically.

gramm.: grammar.

m.: masculine.

metric.: metrically.

metaph.: metaphorical, metaphorically.

eccl.: ecclesiastical.

Fr.: French in etymologies.

mod.: modern.

Works & Authors cited:

Al.: Alexanders Saga. (G. I.)

Eb.: Eyrbyggja Saga. (D. II.)

Edda: Edda. (C. I.)

Eg.: Egils Saga. (D. II.)

Fas.: Fornaldar Sögur. (C. II.)

Fb.: Flateyjar-bók (E. I.)

Fms.: Fornmanna Sögur. (E. I.)

Grág.: Grágás. (B. I.)

Nj.: Njála. (D. II.)

Ó. H.: Ólafs Saga Helga. (E. I.)

Sd.: Svarfdæla Saga. (D. II.)

Stj.: Stjórn. (F. I.)

Sverr. S.: Sverris Saga. (E. I.)

Bs.: Biskupa Sögur. (D. III.)

Skálda: Skálda. (H. I.)

Hrafn.: Hrafnkels Saga. (D. II.)

Mar.: Maríu Saga. (F. III.)

Rb.: Rímbegla. (H. III.)

Fr.: Fritzner’s Dictionary, 1867.

Gþl.: Gulaþings-lög. (B. II.)

➞ See all works cited in the dictionary

Also available in related dictionaries:

This headword also appears in dictionaries of other languages descending from Old Norse.