upside down

American  

adverb

1. with the upper part undermost.

2. in or into complete disorder; topsy-turvy.

   The burglars turned the house upside down.

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upside down British  

adjective

1. (usually postpositive; upside-down when prenominal) turned over completely; inverted

2. informal (upside-down when prenominal) confused; muddled; topsy-turvy

   an upside-down world

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adverb

1. in an inverted fashion

2. 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

The next morning, with a quick flip upside down, Epperson had a sweet icicle with a built-in handle, which he dubbed the Epsicle.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

The Earth appears to us as upside down, with the western Sahara and Iberian peninsula visible to the left and the eastern portion of South America to the right.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

"In fact, we were also able to confirm that previous impressions were probably viewed upside down and back to front."

From Science Daily • Mar. 12, 2026

You seek answers, you trust your faith, your world is turned upside down, but you look for ways to keep going in the face of terrible adversity.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 4, 2026

It’s not fair that everyone else’s life is normal while mine’s been turned upside down, inside out.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas