Nuance experiments: 庶民 vs general terms

I’ve been testing synonyms in real conversations. At my 実家, I tried using 庶民 to describe neighbors, but it felt more 'class-based' than the textbook suggested. I’m also documenting when to use 落ちる versus more formal 'fall' verbs. My data shows 落ちる is the go-to for physical objects, but synonyms get tricky. Anyone have observations on these specific distinctions?