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Let down meaning

Let down means to disappoint someone by not doing what they hoped or expected. It can also mean to make something less good than it should be.

Check yourself: 3 questions

let somebody down

let down · let · letting

B2Separable+2 more meanings

I promised to help, and I won’t let you down.

Let down meanings and examples

3 meanings, each with its own CEFR level. A level marked ~ is our estimate: Oxford and Cambridge give none for that meaning.

  1. 1disappoint someone by not doing what they hoped or expected
  2. 2make something less good than it should be
  3. 3let the air out of a tyre or a ball
  1. 1

    Disappoint someone by not doing what they hoped or expected

    let somebody down

    B2Separable

    • I promised to help, and I won’t let you down.
    • She felt let down when her friend forgot her birthday.
    • Our old car has never let us down.
  2. 2

    Make something less good than it should be

    let something down

    C1Separable

    • The hotel was lovely, but the food let it down.
    • His spelling lets his essays down.
    • The team played well, but the goalkeeper let them down.
  3. 3

    Let the air out of a tyre or a ball

    let something down

    B2Separable

    • Someone let down all four of my tyres!
    • Let the air bed down before you fold it.
    • Kids let the football down as a joke.
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Is let down separable?

Let down is separable, and the person usually goes in the middle: let your team down, let me down. Let down me is wrong.

Feel let down means feel disappointed by someone. The noun is a letdown: The film was a real letdown. Letting down tyres is mainly UK English.

Verb tenses for let down

PresentI let down · she lets down
Pastlet down
Present perfecthave let down
-ing formletting down

Common mistakes with let down

What learners often say, and what to say instead.

  • Wrong: Please don’t let down me.

    Right: Please don’t let me down.

    A pronoun goes between let and down.

  • Wrong: I felt letted down by my best friend.

    Right: I felt let down by my best friend.

    Let does not change: let, let, let.

  • Wrong: The news let me down, so I stayed in bed all day.

    Right: The news got me down, so I stayed in bed all day.

    Let down is about someone failing you; for news making you sad, say get down or bring down.

Synonyms and opposites of let down

Words close to it, and words that mean the opposite.

Similar

Opposite

Let down quiz

Three quick questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why.

  1. 1He said he’d come to my show, but he didn’t. He really ___ me ___.

  2. 2Choose the right sentence.

  3. 3“The film was a big letdown.” What did the speaker think?

More phrasal verbs with let

3 phrasal verbs start with let. Test yourself on all of them in a few minutes.

Test yourself on letTake the full test

Let down FAQ

Questions people ask about let down.

What does don’t let me down mean?

It means please do what you promised. I am trusting you.

What is a letdown?

A letdown is something that is less good than you hoped: The party was a bit of a letdown.

What is the difference between let down and put down?

Let down means disappoint. Put down means criticise someone to make them feel stupid: Stop putting me down.

Use let down in real conversations

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