Standard Lemma guide

downside

name · noun · 11 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈdaʊnˌsaɪd/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: D AW1 N S AY2 D Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

name

Meaning 1

A number of places in England:

A southern suburb of Dunstable, Central Bedfordshire district, Bedfordshire (OS grid ref TL0320).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

name

Meaning 2

A number of places in England:

A suburb of Eastbourne, East Sussex (OS grid ref TV5999).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

name

Meaning 3

A number of places in England:

A hamlet in Chilcompton parish, Somerset, previously in Mendip district, near Downside Abbey and Downside School (OS grid ref ST6450).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

name

Meaning 4

A number of places in England:

A small village in Shepton Mallet parish, Somerset, previously in Mendip district (OS grid ref ST6244).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

name

Meaning 5

A number of places in England:

A small village in Backwell parish and Wrington parish, North Somerset district, Somerset (OS grid ref ST4966).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

name

Meaning 6

A number of places in England:

A small village in Elmbridge borough, Surrey (OS grid ref TQ1158).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

name

Meaning 7

A rural community of the City of Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

A disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The downside of obtaining a higher rank is that far more work is expected.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: flipside

Antonyms: none provided

9

noun

Meaning 9

A downward tendency, especially in the price of shares etc.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

noun

Meaning 10

The side of something that is at the bottom, or that is intended to face downward.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

noun

Meaning 11

a negative aspect of something that is generally positive

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • there is a downside even to motherhood

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: side

History

Etymology

From down (a hill) + side.

Compound of down + side.

Across languages

Translations

32 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: недостатък (nedostatǎk) — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Chinese Mandarin: 負面 /负面 (fùmiàn) — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Chinese Mandarin: 缺點 /缺点 (quēdiǎn) — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Dutch: nadeel — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Dutch: keerzijde — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Dutch: schaduwzijde — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Finnish: haittapuoli — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Finnish: huono puoli — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Finnish: varjopuoli — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • German: Kehrseite — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • German: Nachteil — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • German: Schattenseite — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Hungarian: valaminek a rossz oldala — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Hungarian: hátrány — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Hungarian: árnyoldal — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Hungarian: buktató — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Italian: il rovescio della medaglia — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Italian: lato negativo — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Slovak: slabina — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Slovak: nevýhoda — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Spanish: inconveniente — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Swedish: avigsida — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Swedish: baksida — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Turkish: dezavantaj — disadvantageous aspect of something that is normally advantageous
  • Finnish: laskusuuntaus — downward tendency
  • Finnish: laskusuunta — downward tendency
  • German: Abwärtsbewegung — downward tendency
  • German: Abwärtstrend — downward tendency
  • German: Abschwächung — downward tendency
  • Hungarian: csökkenő tendencia — downward tendency
  • Turkish: zarar — downward tendency
  • Turkish: zarar beklentisi — downward tendency
Real reading context

downside in complete knowledge articles