# head over heels

Pronunciation: US say "hed oh-vur HEELZ" /ˌhɛd oʊ.vɚ ˈhilz/; UK/AUS say "hed oh-vuh HEELZ" /ˌhɛd əʊ.və ˈhiːlz/

## Adverb

1. Deeply and helplessly, to the point of distraction; most often used of being in love.
   - Simple: Very deeply and completely, most often about being in love.
   - _My grandparents fell head over heels in love the summer they met._
   - _By thirty she was head over heels in debt from student loans and credit cards._
3. Turning upside down in a tumble or somersault.
   - Simple: Turning over, with your feet going over your head.
   - _The blast threw him head over heels into the ditch._
   - _The skier caught an edge and went head over heels down the slope._
4. At top speed, in a frantic rush.
   - Simple: Very fast and in a wild hurry.
   - _Investors rushed head over heels into the new tech stocks._
   - _Spooked by the thunder, the horses bolted head over heels for the barn._

## Adjective

2. Hopelessly infatuated with someone; madly in love.
   - Simple: Completely in love with someone.
   - _Half the class was head over heels for the new exchange student._
   - _She has been head over heels with him since their first date._

## Origin

Attested from the 14th century onwards, originally as heels over head, which better expressed the idea of being upside down, since head over heels is the normal state of things.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/head-over-heels (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).