落ちる・墜ちる・落る|おちるochiru[2]nakadaka (mid-high)
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Which spelling to use
落ちるFor beginners, 落ちる is the default written form and the most common of the three forms.
墜ちる墜ちる is a less common kanji-and-kana spelling than 落ちる; learners are more likely to need 落ちる when choosing a written form.
落る落る is the least common of these forms and uses an unusual kana ending, so beginners should use 落ちる instead.
Definitions
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fall; to drop; to come down; to crash; to collapse; to cave in; to give way
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto set (of the sun or moon); to sink; to dip; to go down
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto decrease (of popularity, quality, speed, sales, etc.); to fall; to drop; to go down; to decline; to deteriorate; to abate (of wind)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto be inferior (to); to be not as good (as); to fall short (of)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto come off (of dirt, paint, makeup, etc.); to come out (of a stain); to fade (of colour); to be removed (of an illness, possessing spirit, etc.)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto disappear (of excess fat); to become thinner; to become leaner
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto be left out; to be omitted; to be missing
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fail (an exam); to lose (a contest, election, etc.); to be unsuccessful
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto decline (of morals, character, etc.); to become vulgar (e.g. of a conversation); to stoop (to); to sink (so low)also written as 堕ちる
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto be ruined; to go under; to fall (into hell)also written as 堕ちる
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fall (in love, asleep, etc.)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fall (into someone's hands); to be accepted (of a bid); to be won (of a tender); to be honoured (of a bill)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fall into (a trap); to fall for (a trick)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto give in
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto confess; to own up
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto come to (a conclusion, topic, etc.); to arrive at (in the end)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto leave (a city, castle, etc.); to (be defeated and) flee
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto sink in; to be accepted (in one's heart)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fall (to the enemy); to be defeated
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto come in (of money)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto fall (upon; of light, a shadow, one's gaze, etc.)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto pass out (in judo); to fall unconscious
- ichidan verb, intransitive verb, computingto go down (of a website, server, etc.); to crash
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto log out (of an online game, chat room, etc.); to drop out; to leave; to go offline
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto move to deeper water (of a fish in cold weather)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto die (of an animal)
- ichidan verb, intransitive verbto strike (of lightning)
Conjugation
| Dictionary form | 落ちる（おちる） |
|---|---|
| Polite (masu) | 落ちます（おちます） |
| Negative (nai) | 落ちない（おちない） |
| polite (masen) | 落ちません（おちません） |
| classical zu / nu | 落ちず・落ちぬ（おちず・おちぬ） |
| Past (ta) | 落ちた（おちた） |
| polite (mashita) | 落ちました（おちました） |
| Past negative (nakatta) | 落ちなかった（おちなかった） |
| polite (masen deshita) | 落ちませんでした（おちませんでした） |
| Te form | 落ちて（おちて） |
| Potential | 落ちられる（おちられる） |
| Passive | 落ちられる（おちられる） |
| Causative | 落ちさせる（おちさせる） |
| Causative passive | 落ちさせられる（おちさせられる） |
| Conditional (ba) | 落ちれば（おちれば） |
| tara | 落ちたら（おちたら） |
| Volitional | 落ちよう（おちよう） |
| polite (mashou) | 落ちましょう（おちましょう） |
| Imperative | 落ちろ（おちろ） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Transitive / intransitive pair
ボールが落ちる
ボールを落とす
落ちる describes something falling or dropping on its own, while 落とす describes an agent deliberately or accidentally causing something to fall.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym転落てんらくWrittenWritten word for tumbling down from a height or for a downfall in life, as in 「階段から転落」 and 「転落人生」.
- Synonym墜落ついらくWrittenWritten word for a fall from the sky, especially a plane crash, as in 「墜落事故」.
- Synonym落下らっかNeutralNeutral noun for an object falling; objective and detached, as in 「落下物に注意」.
- Synonym陥るおちいるWrittenWritten word for falling into a hole or a bad state such as a crisis, as in 「危機に陥る」.
- SynonymダウンCasualLoanword for a drop in figures or collapsing from illness or fatigue, as in 「風邪でダウン」; casual.
- Synonym減るへるNeutralFor quantities getting smaller, common in speech, as in 「体重が減る」; unrelated to falling.
- Synonym落つおつWrittenArchaic written form of 「落ちる」 for something falling; found in classical texts, idioms and poetry, as in 「地に落つ」.
- Synonym堕ちるおちるNeutralSame reading, but written 「堕ちる」 it means moral degradation or falling into hell, with a strongly negative tone.
- Synonym落っこちるおっこちるCasualColloquial; to drop or fail an exam, more casual than 「落ちる」.
- Related落ち込むおちこむNeutralFor feeling depressed or business slumping; can also mean falling into a hole.
- RelatedさがるNeutralFor positions or figures going down, and for stepping back; stresses lowering rather than falling.
- Related低下ていかWrittenWritten noun for a decline in ability or quality, as in 「視力の低下」.
- Related下落げらくWrittenWritten noun for a fall in prices or the market, as in 「株価の下落」.
- Related下降かこうWrittenWritten noun for position or level going down, as in 「気温が下降する」.
- Related低落ていらくWrittenWritten noun for value or popularity sinking, as in 「人気が低落する」.
- Related取れるとれるNeutralFor buttons, handles and the like coming off; stresses detaching from where it was fixed, as in 「ボタンが取れる」.
- RelatedはげるNeutralFor paint or plating peeling off, or a color fading, as in 「ペンキが剥げる」.
- Related減少げんしょうWrittenWritten noun for a decrease in number, common in statistics, as in 「人口の減少」; not about falling.
- Related下るくだるWrittenAlso for grades or temperature going down, as in 「成績が下がる」; no sense of dropping from a height.
- Related下向くしたむくNeutralFor a gaze turning downward, or for business and trends turning lower, as in 「景気が下向く」.
- RelatedもげるCasualColloquial; to be torn off, as in 「腕がもげる」.
- Antonym上がるあがるNeutralAntonym of 「落ちる」: to rise or go up from a lower place.
- Antonym上るのぼるNeutralAlso to move up to a school, as in 「小学校に上がる」; for passing an exam say 「受かる」.
Default for things falling and for failing an exam or losing an election. Use 「墜落」 for a plane crash or fall from the sky, 「転落」 for tumbling down or ruin in life, 「陥る」 for falling into a crisis, 「低下」 for weakening ability, 「下落」 for falling prices, 「落ち込む」 for low spirits, and 「上がる」 for rising.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese definitions
Kanji in this word
English equivalents
See also
