vertiginous

adjective

ver·​tig·​i·​nous (ˌ)vər-ˈti-jə-nəs 

1

a

: characterized by or suffering from vertigo or dizziness

b

: inclined to frequent and often pointless change : inconstant

2

: causing or tending to cause dizziness

the vertiginous heights

3

: marked by turning : rotary

the vertiginous motion of the earth

vertiginously adverb

Did you know?

It is generally necessary to avoid crowded rooms and the vertiginous influence of the dance, one 19th-century medical work advised. We're not sure what condition this advice was aimed at, but it may well have been "vertigo," a disordered state characterized by whirling dizziness. "Vertiginous," from the Latin vertiginosus, is the adjective form of "vertigo," which in Latin means a turning or whirling action. Both words descend from the Latin verb vertere, meaning "to turn." ("Vertiginous" and "vertigo" are just two of an almost dizzying array of "vertere" offspring, from "adverse" to "vortex.") The "dizzying" sense of "vertiginous" is often used figuratively, as in "vertiginous medical discoveries may drastically change life in the 21st century."

Synonyms

• aswoon
• dizzy
• giddy
• light-headed
• reeling
• swimmy
• whirling
• woozy

Examples of vertiginous in a Sentence

a 3-D effect that is likely to leave some audience members feeling vertiginous

Recent Examples on the Web

Fair enough: this was a period in time when the world’s most glamorous women were trotting about in vertiginous Saint Laurent Tributes and patent Louboutin Lady Peeps. —Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 8 Jan. 2025

Steel beams arrived in the 1880s, launching an era of vertiginous skyscraper growth. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 8 Jan. 2025

Even a $170 million defamation lawsuit against Netflix filed by the woman claiming to be the real Martha, hasn’t stopped the duo’s vertiginous rise through Hollywood, garnering Emmy and Golden Globe noms and, for Gadd, a lucrative first-look deal with the streamer. —Alex Ritman, Variety, 26 Dec. 2024

The vertiginous price highs and feverish hype around crypto have sucked in a lot of new money as institutional and retail investors spend their stimulus money on stock-trading platform Robinhood. —Gian M. Volpicelli, WIRED, 17 June 2022

Word History

Etymology

Latin vertiginosus, from vertigin-, vertigo

First Known Use

1608, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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Medical Definition

vertiginous

adjective

ver·​tig·​i·​nous (ˌ)vər-ˈtij-ə-nəs 

: of, relating to, characterized by, or affected with vertigo or dizziness