verfallen
Translation
to decay, to decline, to expire, to fall for
Examples
Die alte Burg ist leider verfallen.
The old castle has unfortunately fallen into decay.
Mein Gutschein ist gestern verfallen.
My voucher expired yesterday.
Er ist dieser Frau rettungslos verfallen.
He has fallen hopelessly for this woman.
Grammar Patterns
verfallen (sein) to decay, to expire The old house has decayed.
((sb.dat)) verfallen (sein) to be devoted to sb., to have fallen for sb. He has completely fallen for her.
in ((sth.acc)) verfallen to fall into (a state) She fell into a panic.
Similar Words
zerfallen (to fall apart), ablaufen (to expire)
Etymology
From 'ver-' (prefix indicating something going wrong) + 'fallen' (to fall). It means 'to fall into a bad state'.
Memory Tips
Imagine a building 'falling' ('fallen') into ruin ('ver-'), or a ticket 'falling' past its valid date.