Meaning

noun a ventilation shaft through which air enters a mine

adjective directed downward

adjective filled with melancholy and despondency

originThe adjective is derived from Middle English doun-casten, *adoun-casten (“(adjective) cast down, dejected; (verb) to break down (something); to overcome (someone); to overturn (something)”), from down (“in a downward direction; (figurative) to destruction”), adoun (“downward”) + casten (“to throw (something), fling, hurl; to overcome (someone), defeat, overpower; [etc.]”) (from Old Norse kasta…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0