Meaning & use
dizzy
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Meanings
adjectivenot comparable
Feeling that you or the room is spinning and you might fall or faint.
Grammar: Used after linking verbs like feel, be, or get, not usually before a noun in this sense.
Patterns
- feel dizzy
- get dizzy
- be dizzy from something
I stood up too quickly and felt dizzy for a moment.
The heat made her dizzy, so she sat down in the shade.
He gets dizzy when he spins around.
adjectivebefore a nounfigurative
Making you feel unsteady or confused, especially because of height or speed.
Grammar: Comes before a noun, as in dizzy heights; the -ing form dizzying is also common.
Patterns
- dizzy heights
- a dizzying speed
- a dizzying rise
She looked down from the dizzy height of the tower.
The company's dizzying growth surprised everyone.
He reached the dizzy heights of the music charts.
adjectivecomparableinformalold-fashioned
Silly or scatterbrained in a lighthearted way.
Grammar: Can be used before a noun or after a linking verb; comparative forms are rare.
Patterns
- a dizzy blonde
- act dizzy
In the old movie, she played a dizzy young woman.
He pretended to be dizzy to make his friends laugh.
Word forms
| comparative | dizzier |
|---|---|
| superlative | dizziest |
Common combinations
- feel dizzy
- Do you feel dizzy when you stand up?
- get dizzy
- I get dizzy on roller coasters.
- dizzy spell
- She had a dizzy spell and had to lie down.
- dizzying speed
- Technology changes at a dizzying speed.
Synonyms and how they differ
- lightheaded
- Feeling as if you might faint, often less about spinning and more about weakness.
- giddy
- Similar to dizzy but can also mean excited or silly; less common in medical contexts.
- vertiginous
- A formal or literary word for causing dizziness, especially from height; not used for everyday feelings.
Opposites
Word family
- dizziness noun
- The feeling of being dizzy.
- dizzily adverb
- In a dizzy way.
- dizzying adjective
- Making you feel dizzy or amazed.
Commonly confused: dizzy or drizzly?
dizzy vs drizzly
Drizzly means raining lightly; dizzy is about balance or spinning.
Practice
Choose the correct word: After the long car ride, I felt ___ and had to sit down.
Choose one answer.
Dizzy fits after feel to describe the feeling of spinning. Drizzly means light rain, dizzying describes something that causes dizziness, and dizzily is an adverb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “dizzy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.