downcast
Meanings
- Of the eyes, a facial expression, etc.: looking downwards, usually as a sign of discouragement, sadness, etc., or sometimes modesty.
- Of a person or thing: cast or thrown to the ground.
- Of a thing: directed downwards.
- Of a person: feeling despondent or discouraged.
- Of a person or thing: defeated, overthrown; also, destroyed, ruined.
- Synonym of downthrow (“a depression of the strata on one side of a fault; also, the degree of downward displacement in such a fault”).
- An act of looking downwards, usually as a sign of discouragement, sadness, etc., or sometimes modesty; hence (uncountable, archaic), dejection, melancholy.
- An act, or the situation, of being cast or thrown to the ground.
- A defeat, an overthrow; also, an act of destruction or ruin.
- A cast (“change of expression of a data type”) from supertype to subtype.
- A ventilating shaft down which air passes in circulating through a mine.
- To turn (the eyes) downwards, usually as a sign of discouragement, sadness, etc., or sometimes modesty.
- To cast or throw (something) downwards; also, to drop or lower (something).
- To demolish or tear down (a building, etc.).
- To make (someone) feel despondent or discouraged; to discourage, to sadden.
- To cast (“change the expression of”) (a data type) from supertype to subtype.
- To reproach or upbraid (someone); also, to taunt (someone).
- To depose or overthrow (a leader, an institution, etc.); also (sometimes reflexive), to bring down (oneself or someone) from an exalted position; to humble.
Pronunciation
Word forms
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Middle English doun-casten, *adoun-casten (“(adjective) cast down, dejected; (verb) to break down (something); to overcome (someone); to overturn (something)”), from down (“in a downward direction; (figurative) to destruction”), adoun (“downward”) + casten (“to throw (something), fling, hurl; to overcome (someone), defeat, overpower; [etc.]”) (from Old Norse kasta (“to cast, throw”), from Proto-Germanic *kastōną (“to throw”), from *kas- (“to throw, toss; to bring up”); further etymology uncertain), modelled similarly to other constructions in Middle English such as adoun-throwen (“to throw down”) and adoun-werpen (“to throw down”)). The English word is analysable as down- (prefix meaning ‘lower direction or position’) + cast (“that has been thrown”, adjective). The noun is derived from the adjective.