| 释义 |
top·sy-tur·vy
I. adverb
also top·sy-tur·vey \-vē, -vi\
Etymology: earlier topsy-tirvy, topsy-tervy, probably from tops (plural of top) (I) + -y (diminutive suffix) + obsolete English tirve, terve to turn, turn upside down (from Middle English terven, probably from — assumed — Old English tierfan) + English -y (diminutive suffix); akin to Old English tearflian to turn, roll — more at tirl
1. : in an inverted posture : with the top or head downward : upside down
< fall topsy-turvy >
2. : in a state where proper or normal places, values, standards, objects, or facts are reversed
< the lives of two families are turned topsy-turvy — Evangeline Davis >
II. adjective
(sometimes -er/-est)
: turned topsy-turvy : totally disordered : reversed
< interprets the … licensing regulations to suit its own topsy-turvy hours of labor — Dorothy Sayers >
III. transitive verb
(-ed/-ing/-es)
: to turn or make topsy-turvy
< make in places the order of sedimentation a topsy-turvied sequence — W.E.Swinton >
IV. noun
(-es)
: topsy-turviness |