Emily Dickinson Lexicon

DOWN, adv.

1. In a descending direction; tending from a higher to a lower place; as, he is going down.
2. On the ground, or at the bottom; as, he is down; hold him down.
3. Below the horizon; as, the sun is down.
4. In the direction from a higher to a lower condition; as, his reputation is going down.
5. Into disrepute or disgrace. A man may sometimes preach down error; he may write down himself or his character, or run down his rival; but he can neither preach nor write down folly, vice or fashion.
6. Into subjection; into a due consistence; as, to boil down, in decoctions and culinary processes.
7. At length; extended or prostrate, on the ground; or on any flat surface; as, to lie down; he is lying down. Up and down, here and there; in a rambling course. It is sometimes used without a verb, as down, down; in which cases the sense is known by the construction. Down with a building, is a command to pull it down, to demolish it. Down with him, signifies, throw him. Down, down, may signify, come down, or go down, or take down, lower. It is often used by seamen, down with the fore-sail, &c. Locke uses it for go down, or be received; as, any kind of food will down; but the use is not elegant, nor legitimate. Sidney uses it as a verb, “To down proud hearts,” to subdue or conquer them; but the use is not legitimate.