felled; felling; fells
1
a
: to cut, knock, or bring down
fell a tree
b
: kill
Her father was felled by a heart attack.
2
: to sew (a seam) by folding one raw edge under the other and sewing flat on the wrong side
feller
noun
fell
3 of 5past tense of fall
1
fellness
noun
dialectal British
: a high barren field or moor
Synonyms
Examples of fell in a Sentence
Verb
using an ax to fell a tree
He's strong enough to fell an ox.
Adjective
planning for the distribution of resources in case of some fell event
war crimes committed by a fell and barbarous enemy
Recent Examples on the Web
Helen Regan, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024
The towers, which once numbered around 100, are now mostly gone, felled during the centuries or incorporated into palazzos and modern buildings.
—Elisabetta Povoledo, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024
That preparation translated into defensive domination on Wednesday night as the Pride felled No. 4 seed San Ramon Valley 60-45 and advanced to the title game against De La Salle.
—Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News, 22 Feb. 2024
Photos from the China Meteorological Administration showed broken trees scattered across roads in Hunan, felled by freezing rain.
—Reuters, NBC News, 7 Feb. 2024
Buildings had been felled by airstrikes, sending up plumes of smoke.
—Miriam Berger, Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2024
But the old institutions and personalities that defined the culture are fading: Church attendance has declined at the same time that several lions of the movement have died, retired or been felled by scandal.
—Ruth Graham, New York Times, 17 Mar. 2024
Trees are felled to make their paper and gas-powered vehicles spew carbon to deliver them.
—Brooke Staggs, Orange County Register, 14 Feb. 2024
The lingering outages came after the strongest storm of the winter season roared ashore over the weekend — felling trees across the state and causing power outages that impacted more than 1 million PG&E customers across the company’s system.
—Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2024
Daley Quinn, Verywell Health, 1 Apr. 2024
On Christmas Day, more than one hundred of the city’s affordable apartments were made uninhabitable in one fell swoop.
—Mya Frazier, Harper's Magazine, 26 Feb. 2024
Everything that had been achieved in Russia since 1985—from the establishment of democratic institutions to the abolition of censorship and the reunification of Russian and European cultures—Putin swept off the table in one fell swoop.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 7 Mar. 2024
All these activities are planned for you as part of the cruise itinerary—as a way for travelers to sample the diverse wonders of The Last Frontier in one fell swoop.
—Janice Wald Henderson, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Mar. 2024
In one fell swoop, Kawasaki nearly perfected the high-speed touring motorcycle.
—Peter Jackson, Robb Report, 1 Mar. 2024
These trusty makeup products help with color correction, add a bit of coverage, and include a healthy dose of skin-loving ingredients, all in one fell swoop.
—Danielle Cohen, Glamour, 1 Mar. 2024
At best, Biden has found a way to achieve piecemeal what he was prohibited from achieving in one fell swoop.
—The Editors, National Review, 22 Feb. 2024
In one fell swoop, Walden had essentially demoted a division leader who had created headaches for top brass in Burbank.
—Lachlan Cartwright, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Feb. 2024
Emma Love, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Feb. 2024
Petty theft, embezzlement and fraud, and vandalism all increased, whereas assault, drug offenses and DUI’s fell.
—Will McCarthy, The Mercury News, 24 Jan. 2024
The landscape is still worked by traditional sheep farmers, with their livestock inescapable when out tramping over the fells.
—Jack Guy, CNN, 16 May 2023
Fell-Davis fell apart.
—Meg Bernhard, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2023
As day turned to night, an uncanny quiet fell, with the remnants of Ghani’s government calling for calm.
—Marcus Yam, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2021
Verb
Hualien resident Hong Changyi told CNN that his liquor store was in one of the buildings felled by the quake.
—Helen Regan, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024
The towers, which once numbered around 100, are now mostly gone, felled during the centuries or incorporated into palazzos and modern buildings.
—Elisabetta Povoledo, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024
That preparation translated into defensive domination on Wednesday night as the Pride felled No. 4 seed San Ramon Valley 60-45 and advanced to the title game against De La Salle.
—Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News, 22 Feb. 2024
Photos from the China Meteorological Administration showed broken trees scattered across roads in Hunan, felled by freezing rain.
—Reuters, NBC News, 7 Feb. 2024
Buildings had been felled by airstrikes, sending up plumes of smoke.
—Miriam Berger, Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2024
But the old institutions and personalities that defined the culture are fading: Church attendance has declined at the same time that several lions of the movement have died, retired or been felled by scandal.
—Ruth Graham, New York Times, 17 Mar. 2024
Trees are felled to make their paper and gas-powered vehicles spew carbon to deliver them.
—Brooke Staggs, Orange County Register, 14 Feb. 2024
The lingering outages came after the strongest storm of the winter season roared ashore over the weekend — felling trees across the state and causing power outages that impacted more than 1 million PG&E customers across the company’s system.
—Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2024
Adjective
Keep In Mind Some people prefer a tongue scraper that’s wider and allows for a deep clean in one fell swoop.
—Daley Quinn, Verywell Health, 1 Apr. 2024
On Christmas Day, more than one hundred of the city’s affordable apartments were made uninhabitable in one fell swoop.
—Mya Frazier, Harper's Magazine, 26 Feb. 2024
Everything that had been achieved in Russia since 1985—from the establishment of democratic institutions to the abolition of censorship and the reunification of Russian and European cultures—Putin swept off the table in one fell swoop.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 7 Mar. 2024
All these activities are planned for you as part of the cruise itinerary—as a way for travelers to sample the diverse wonders of The Last Frontier in one fell swoop.
—Janice Wald Henderson, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Mar. 2024
In one fell swoop, Kawasaki nearly perfected the high-speed touring motorcycle.
—Peter Jackson, Robb Report, 1 Mar. 2024
These trusty makeup products help with color correction, add a bit of coverage, and include a healthy dose of skin-loving ingredients, all in one fell swoop.
—Danielle Cohen, Glamour, 1 Mar. 2024
At best, Biden has found a way to achieve piecemeal what he was prohibited from achieving in one fell swoop.
—The Editors, National Review, 22 Feb. 2024
In one fell swoop, Walden had essentially demoted a division leader who had created headaches for top brass in Burbank.
—Lachlan Cartwright, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Feb. 2024
Noun
Classes are held in the Glasshouse with calming views of the fells.
—Emma Love, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Feb. 2024
Petty theft, embezzlement and fraud, and vandalism all increased, whereas assault, drug offenses and DUI’s fell.
—Will McCarthy, The Mercury News, 24 Jan. 2024
The landscape is still worked by traditional sheep farmers, with their livestock inescapable when out tramping over the fells.
—Jack Guy, CNN, 16 May 2023
Fell-Davis fell apart.
—Meg Bernhard, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2023
As day turned to night, an uncanny quiet fell, with the remnants of Ghani’s government calling for calm.
—Marcus Yam, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fell.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near fell
Cite this Entry
“Fell.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fell. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fell
1 of 3 verb1
a
: to cut, beat, or knock down
fell trees
2
: to sew (a seam) by folding one edge under the other
fell
2 of 3past of fall entry 1
fell
3 of 3 adjectiveEtymology
Verb
Old English fellan "to knock down"
Adjective
Middle English fel "fierce, terrible," from early French fel (same meaning), from fel, felon "villain, evildoer" — related to felon
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