vertiginous

American  

[ver-tij-uh-nuhs] / vərˈtɪdʒ ə nəs /

adjective

1. whirling; spinning; rotary.

   vertiginous currents of air.

2. affected with vertigo; dizzy.

3. liable or threatening to cause vertigo.

   a vertiginous climb.

4. apt to change quickly; unstable.

   a vertiginous economy.

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vertiginous British  

/ vɜːˈtɪdʒɪnəs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or having vertigo

2. producing dizziness

3. whirling

4. changeable; unstable

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Other Word Forms

• unvertiginous adjective
• unvertiginously adverb
• unvertiginousness noun
• vertiginously adverb
• vertiginousness noun

Etymology

Origin of vertiginous

1600–10; < Latin vertīginōsus dizzy, equivalent to vertīgin- (stem of vertīgō ) vertigo + -ōsus -ous

Explanation

To be vertiginous is to be dizzy and woozy. It's a disorienting feeling. There's a famous movie called "Vertigo," which is named after a condition of extreme dizziness, often caused by heights. The word vertiginous applies to similar feelings and sensations. The flu makes many people feel vertiginous. Sometimes when you stand up too fast, you can get vertiginous for a second, and most people feel vertiginous after spinning in a circle. Vertigo is a Latin word that originally meant "whirling or spinning," from its root vertere, "to turn."

Example Sentences

The book explores the concept of exposure, “the vertiginous feeling of depth that can overcome a climber on a wall.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

Arguably the most significant development in efforts to curb climate change -- the vertiginous cost reductions of solar and wind power, batteries and electric vehicles -- was seeded long before Paris.

From Barron's • Oct. 13, 2025

The individual tiles and reinforcement bars create a striking impression of an enthralling and vertiginous centrifugal motion.

From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2025

The film’s greatest accomplishment is that pervasive feeling of wrongness, of danger, a vertiginous sense that there’s no safe haven left.

From Slate • Oct. 29, 2024

He’d begun to bridge the vertiginous gap between what he told the world and the truth he knew deep inside.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel