Face down or facedown?
face down is an adverb meaning “In a manner such that the face, front, or surface which is normally directed…”; facedown is an adjective meaning “Alternative form of face-down”. face down is written as two words and facedown as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between face down and facedown?
| face down | facedown | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | adverb, adjective, noun, verb | adjective, adverb, noun |
| Meaning | In a manner such that the face, front, or surface which is normally directed forward for viewing is positioned downward Having the face, front or surface positioned downward A confrontation | Alternative form of face-down Alternative form of face-down (“a confrontation”) |
| Example | She was sleeping face-down on the sofa | none recorded |
| Pronunciation | not recorded | not recorded |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | about once in every 5 million words |
Sources: face down and facedown in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of face down and facedown
face down
- 1
In a manner such that the face, front, or surface which is normally directed forward for viewing is positioned downward
She was sleeping face-down on the sofa
- 2
Having the face, front or surface positioned downward
the face-down cards in a game
- 3
A confrontation
- 4
Alternative form of face-down
- 5
Alternative form of face-down
- 6
To confront; to abash by stern looks
facedown
- 1
Alternative form of face-down
- 2
Alternative form of face-down
- 3
Alternative form of face-down (“a confrontation”)
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, face down or facedown?
face down is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; facedown about once in every 5 million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).