topsy-turvy

American  

[top-see-tur-vee] / ˈtɒp siˈtɜr vi /

adverb

1. with the top where the bottom should be; upside down.

2. in or into a reversed condition or order.

3. in or into a state of confusion or disorder.

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adjective

1. turned upside down; inverted; reversed.

   a topsy-turvy reflection.

2. confused or disorderly.

   a topsy-turvy classroom.

noun

plural

topsy-turvies

1. inversion of the natural order.

2. a state of confusion or disorder.

topsy-turvy British  

/ ˈtɒpsɪˈtɜːvɪ /

adjective

1. upside down

2. in a state of confusion

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adverb

1. in a topsy-turvy manner

noun

1. a topsy-turvy state

Other Word Forms

• topsy-turvily adverb
• topsyturviness noun

Etymology

Origin of topsy-turvy

1520–30; perhaps variant of top syd turvye topside down (with loss of d before t ); turvy, variant of tervy, equivalent to obsolete terve to turn over (cognate with Old High German zerben ) + -y ¹

Example Sentences

Luton -- best known for its airport serving budget airlines and a football team with topsy-turvy fortunes -- was for centuries an industrial town.

From Barron's

The topsy-turvy year resulted in strong demand for the banks’ trading and markets services, while dealmaking surged with an uptick in mergers and acquisitions and initial public offerings of stock.

From The Wall Street Journal

It blew topsy-turvy in an eastward direction, borne by fate and the prevailing winds toward the wide, unforgiving sea.

From Literature

What appears to have started as one man’s idea of a joke has spread in recent years, with more households offering the tuber in an effort to give the festivities a topsy-turvy spin.

From The Wall Street Journal

In the topsy-turvy world of a power grid besieged by exploding demands from artificial-intelligence data centers, the economics are tilting toward geothermal.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• chaotic
• confused
• disarranged
• disorderly