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
- upside-down adjective
- upside-downness noun
Etymology
Origin of upside down
1300–50; re-formation ( upside ) of Middle English upsedoun, earlier up so doun ( 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.
Cut to 2026, and a point in history when the world feels horrendously upside down.
From Salon
“It’s upside down. A lot of people say that it was actually upside down before, and we just righted it,” he said.
From MarketWatch
Like Will, he was a boy coming of age in his own upside down dimension — fame — while stepping into his true self.
From Los Angeles Times
They spent the bowl season in a Las Vegas hotel, walking the Strip with a three-week old, in a new-parent-induced delirium, their whole lives having suddenly turned upside down.
From Los Angeles Times
While there were no casualties, some of those caught up in the chaos have since said that lives were nevertheless "turned upside down", as the boats were also homes.
From BBC
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.
