To Fall Over
To Fall Down
intransitive verb, godan verb
Do you remember the word 転がる? This is kind of similar, instead of rolling, this is more for when something falls and hits the ground. It means to fall over or to fall down. Just imagine someone falling off a chair face first into the dirt and making a ぶ sound.
ころぶ
The reading comes from 転がる. Hopefully you know that one well enough to associate it with this one, meaning you can read them both.
サヨナラホームランを打った後であのせん手が転んだのはおも白かったね。
It was funny that the player fell over after hitting a game-ending home run.
今日のコウイチは、久しぶりに転んでもなかなかった。
Today, Koichi didn't cry even though he fell down for the first time in a long time.
コウイチはもう少しで地面に転ぶところだったが、スーパーマンのコスプレをしたビエトに助けられた。
Koichi had almost fallen to the ground but he was saved by Viet, who was wearing a Superman costume.