upside down
Americanadverb
-
with the upper part undermost.
-
in or into complete disorder; topsy-turvy.
The burglars turned the house upside down.
adjective
-
(usually postpositive; upside-down when prenominal) turned over completely; inverted
-
informal (upside-down when prenominal) confused; muddled; topsy-turvy
an upside-down world
adverb
-
in an inverted fashion
-
in a chaotic or crazy manner
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of upside down
1300–50; re-formation ( see upside) of Middle English upsedoun, earlier up so doun ( see up, so 1, down 1; sense of so obscure)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A meme circulated portraying the Luce with iPhone applications photo-shopped onto the top, and another showing the car upside down and plugged into an iPhone charger.
From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2026
His clientele has flipped upside down, from some of the most refined people in the New York area to some of the seediest.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
The court heard that the defendants "life has been turned upside down".
From BBC • May 13, 2026
So far this year, the Iran war has turned OPEC’s usual production problem upside down.
From Barron's • Apr. 28, 2026
We turn the magazine sideways, then upside down.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
