- mean, underhand, or despicable
- information, esp secret or true information
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
low•down /n. ˈloʊˌdaʊn; adj. -ˈdaʊn/USA pronunciation n. [countable;
usually singular;
the + ~]
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026usually singular;
the + ~]
- Informal Termsthe real and plain facts or the truth:Give me the lowdown on the situation.
adj.
- Informal Terms contemptible;
base;
mean:[before a noun]an awful, lowdown trick. - Informal Termsfunky2 (def. 1).
low•down
(n. lō′doun′;adj. lō′doun′),USA pronunciation [Informal.]
n.
adj.
n.
- Informal Termsthe real and unadorned facts;
the true, secret, or inside information (usually prec. by the):We gave them the lowdown on the new housing project.
adj.
- Informal Termscontemptible;
base;
mean:a lowdown trick. - Informal Termslow, esp. socially or morally;
degraded.
- low1 + down1 1540–50
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
low-down informal adj lowdown
'lowdown' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):