let-down

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   A disappointment or anticlimax.

   • After seeing all the advertisements, the show itself was quite a let-down.
   • Journalists aside, are we so used to people looking glossier and younger in their profile photos—whether on social media or for work—that a certain percentage of “let-down” is baked into our expectations of meeting them in person?
2. 2

   The neurohormonal release of milk in dairy cows or in breastfeeding human mothers.

   • The majority of peasant farmers in the tropics allow the calf to suckle before milking in order to obtain a let-down of milk.
   • Occasionally a baby will be caught off-guard by mother's strong let-down and he will choke and sputter a bit.
   • Through oxytocin mediation, these afferent pathways become so well established that letdown can occur even when the mother merely thinks of her baby.
3. 3

   The clearance of an aircraft to descend through clouds to clear air below, or the process…

   The clearance of an aircraft to descend through clouds to clear air below, or the process of granting such a clearance.

   • The flight received a radar letdown from air traffic control.

The neighborhood

• neighborlet down