topsy-turviness
English
Alternative forms
- topsyturviness
- topsy-turvyness
Etymology
topsy-turvy + -ness
Noun
topsy-turviness (uncountable)
- The state or condition of being topsy-turvy, disorderly or muddled.
- 1847, Gilbert Abbott à Beckett, The Comic History of England, London: Punch, Volume I, Book 4, Chapter 4, p. 278,
- Poor Margaret’s state of mind may have accounted for the tremendous topsy-turviness—to use a familiar expression—of her sentences.
- 1863, Louisa May Alcott, Hospital Sketches, Boston: James Redpath, Chapter 6, p. 95,
- The ward master comes to the door of each room that is to be thinned, reads off a list of names, bids their owners look sharp and be ready when called for; and, as he vanishes, the rooms fall into an indescribable state of topsy-turvyness, as the boys begin to black their boots, brighten spurs, if they have them, overhaul knapsacks, make presents […]
- 1901, G. K. Chesterton, “A Defence of Patriotism” in The Defendant, London: Dent, pp. 170-171,
- It is said […] that a vast amount of English grammar and literature is picked up in the course of learning Latin and Greek. This is perfectly true, but the topsy-turviness of the idea never seems to strike them. It is like saying that a baby picks up the art of walking in the course of learning to hop […]
- 1910, Edith Wharton, “The Blond Beast” in Tales of Men and Ghosts, New York: Scribner, p. 312,
- This discovery gave the world a strange new topsy-turvyness, and set Millner’s theories spinning about his brain like the cabin furniture of a tossing ship.
- 2016, Sean Williams, “The downfall of a Russian soccer team,” The New Yorker, 11 February, 2016,
- “It’s the curse,” he said, referencing Beria, for whose sins Dynamo, many say, has yet to atone. But the club’s predicament owes more to the topsy-turviness of Russian soccer than to some historic hoodoo.
- 1847, Gilbert Abbott à Beckett, The Comic History of England, London: Punch, Volume I, Book 4, Chapter 4, p. 278,
Synonyms
- chaos, disorganization, muddle.
- See Thesaurus:disorder