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Tenacious Learner Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Could you tell me a suitable explanation for 'fell back'?

Hi teachers,
I've looked for the meaning of 'fell back' in a few dictionaries, but none of them seem to fit in the following context.
Could you tell me a suitable explanation please?

Then Coke hit him as hard as he could in the stomach and he fell to the floor heavily. The old lady screamed. The policeman tried to get up, but fell back weakly.

Thanks in advance.
  

Top answer

It's literal in this context. A more common way to say it is "fell down".

— Vorpar

  • It's literal in this context.
  • A more common way to say it is "fell down".
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8 Answers
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It's literal in this context. A more common way to say it is "fell down".
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Coke hit the policeman hard in the stomach, and the policeman fell to the floor. The policeman, still conscious, tried to back get up on his feet, but, still weak from the blow to the stomach, he fell to the floor again (fell back weakly).
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Hi Vorpar,
Thank you for your reply.

TS
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AnonymousCoke hit the policeman hard in the stomach, and the policeman fell to the floor. The policeman, still conscious, tried to back get up on his feet, but, still weak from the blow to the stomach, he fell to the floor again (fell back weakly).
Hi,
Thank you for your reply.

TS
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Thinking SpainThe policeman tried to get up, but fell back weakly.
The question is whether 'back' means 'returning to his previous position' or 'in a backwards direction'. Either is a possible interpretation.

Compare, for the first possible meaning:

came -- then went back
went -- then came back
fell (down) -- then got back up
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CalifJimThe question is whether 'back' means 'returning to his previous position' or 'in a backwards direction'. Either is a possible interpretation.
Hi Jim,
Thank you for your reply. In this case is 'returning to his previous position' because of the context. After the hit he fell to the floor so he made the attempt to get up but he couldn't due to his ph
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Thinking SpainCould this be a suitable explanation too or it is completely unsuitable?An explanation to 'fell back weakly' is 'went back down to the floor with no physical force'.
No, that doesn't seem reasonable to me.

CJ
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CalifJimNo, that doesn't seem reasonable to me.
Hi Jim,
Thank you very much for your reply.

TS
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