head over heels

Idioms

Completely, thoroughly, as in They fell head over heels in love. This expression originated in the 1300s as heels over head and meant literally being upside down. It took its present form in the 1700s and its present meaning in the 1800s.

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.

“They literally fell head over heels flat into an ongoing operation that we had,” said Robert Zachariasiewicz, the supervising DEA agent who is now at corporate intelligence firm Elicius.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

It appears that LaNasa and Show fell head over heels for the home—paying more than $100,000 over the original asking price of $1.99 million to secure the property.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 10, 2026

It’s where I nailed a pivotal job interview, one that somehow ended with me falling head over heels into a condo’s indoor swimming pool while wearing my winter coat.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 31, 2026

Firstly, it would be the British boxing fraternity who would fall head over heels for an aggressive, forward-thinking fighter with a penchant for bending over opponents with air-sapping body shots.

From BBC • Sep. 14, 2025

Then, to his utter astonishment, the lion, still on its hind legs, checked itself suddenly, turned head over heels, picked itself up, and rushed away.

From "The Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023