Word.ws English Dictionary

giddy

Syllables: gid·dyUK/ˈɡɪd.i//ˈɡɪd.i/

giddy adjective: feeling a sense of spinning in the head, causing a perception of unsteadiness and being about to fall down; dizzy.

Adjective

giddy (comparative giddier, superlative giddiest)

  1. (predicative) Feeling a sense of spinning in the head, causing a perception of unsteadiness and being about to fall down; dizzy.
    • The man became giddy upon standing up so fast.
    • [W]hilst I vvas thus muſing, and attentively looking upon the VVater, to try vvhether I could diſcover the Bottom, it happened to me, as it often does to thoſe that gaze too ſtedfaſtly on ſvvift Streams, that my Head began to grovv giddy, and my Leggs to ſtagger tovvards the River, into vvhich...1665, Robert Boyle, “Occasional Reflections. Discourse XVIII. Upon a Giddiness Occasion’d by Looking Attentively on a Rapid Stream.”, in Occasional Reflections upon Several Subiects. Whereto is...
  2. (attributive) Causing or likely to cause dizziness or a feeling of unsteadiness.
    • They climbed to a giddy height.
    • [A]s vve pact along, / Vpon the giddy footing of the hatches: / Me thought that Gloceſter ſtumbled, and in ſtumbling, / Stroke me that thought to ſtay him ouer board, / Into the tumbling billovves of the maine.c. 1593 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The Tragedy of King Richard the Third. […] (First Quarto), London: […] Valentine Sims [and Peter Short] for Andrew Wise, […], published 1597, →OCLC...
    Synonyms:
    vertiginous
  3. Moving around something or spinning rapidly.
    • To ſpoil Antiquities of hammerd ſteele, / And turn the giddy round of Fortunes vvheele.1594, William Shakespeare, Lucrece (First Quarto), London: […] Richard Field, for Iohn Harrison, […], →OCLC, signature G3, verso
    • So vvhirls a VVheel, in giddy Circle toſt, / And rapid as it runs, the ſingle Spokes are loſt.1720, Homer, “Book XVIII”, in Alexander Pope, transl., The Iliad of Homer, volume V, London: […] W[illiam] Bowyer, for Bernard Lintott […], →OCLC, page 99, lines 695–696
  4. (broadly) Unable to concentrate or think seriously; easily excited; impulsive; also, lightheartedly silly; frivolous.
    • The Biſhop, and the Duke of Gloſters men, / Forbidden late to carry any VVeapon, / Haue fill'd their Pockets full of peeble ſtones; / And banding themſelues in contrary parts, / Doe pelt ſo faſt at one anothers Pate, / That many haue their giddy braynes knockt out: […]1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
    • [I]n this ſtanding vvoodden cheſt, / Conſorted vvith theſe fevv bookes, let me lye / In priſon, and here be coffin'd, vvhen I dye; / […] / Here gathering Chroniclers, and by them ſtand / Giddie fantaſtique Poëts of each land.c. 1593–1597, J[ohn] Donne, “[Satyres] Satyre I”, in Poems, […] with Elegies on the Authors Death, London: […] M[iles] F[lesher] for Iohn Marriot, […], published 1633, →OCLC, page 325
    1. (broadly, dated) Used as an intensifier.
      • 'E isn't one o' the reg'lar Line, nor 'e isn't one of the crew. / 'E's a kind of a giddy harumfrodite—soldier an' sailor too!1896, Rudyard Kipling, “[Barrack-Room Ballads.] ‘Soldier an’ Sailor Too’.”, in The Seven Seas, London: Methuen & Co. […], →OCLC, page 171
      • I found him pokin' about the place on his own hook afterwards, an' I thought I'd show him the giddy drill. When I found he was so pleased, I wasn't goin' to damp his giddy ardour. He mightn't ha' given me the quid if I had.1899 May, Rudyard Kipling, “The Flag of Their Country”, in Stalky & Co., London: Macmillan & Co., published 1899, →OCLC, page 192
  5. (broadly) Joyfully elated; overcome with excitement or happiness.
    • The boy was giddy when he opened his birthday presents.
    • I come by note to giue, and to receiue; / Like one of tvvo contending in a prize, / That thinks he hath done vvell in peoples eyes; / Hearing applauſe and vniuerſall ſhout, / Giddy in ſpirit, ſtill gazing in a doubt, / VVhether thoſe pearles^([sic – meaning peals]) of praiſe be his or no.c. 1596–1598 (date written), W[illiam] Shakespeare, The Excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. […] (First Quarto), [London]: […] J[ames] Roberts [for Thomas Heyes], published 1600, →OCLC, [Act...
  6. (UK, broadly, dialectal) Feeling great anger; furious, raging.
  7. (UK, dialectal) Of an animal, chiefly a sheep: affected by gid (“a disease caused by parasitic infestation of the brain by tapeworm larvae”), which may result in the animal turning around aimlessly.
  8. (figuratively, obsolete) Of a thing, especially a ship: unsteady, as if dizzy.
    • The giddy Ship ran round; the Tempeſt tore / Her Maſt, and over-board the Rudder bore.1700, [John] Dryden, “Ceyx and Alcyone”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, page 368
    • VVide o'er the vvaſte the rage of Boreas ſvveeps, / And Night ruſh'd headlong on the ſhaded deeps. / Novv here, novv there, the giddy ſhips are born, / And all the rattling ſhrouds in fragments torn.1725, Homer, “Book IX”, in [William Broome], transl., The Odyssey of Homer. […], volume II, London: […] Bernard Lintot, →OCLC, page 195, lines 77–80

Noun

giddy (plural giddies)

  1. (archaic) Someone or something that is frivolous or impulsive.
    • But the giddy, the idle, and the frivolous part of the vvorld vvill inceſſantly purſue a phantom, and graſp a ſhadovv.1778 September, X. X., “The Observer. Number LVII.”, in The Town and Country Magazine; or, Universal Repository of Knowledge, Instruction, and Entertainment, volume X, London: […] A[rchibald]...
    • She seemed born not only to captivate the giddy, but to turn the heads of the sage.1838, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], chapter I, in Alice or The Mysteries […], volume I, London: Saunders and Otley, […], →OCLC, book II, page 125
  2. (UK, archaic) Synonym of gid (“a disease caused by parasitic infestation of the brain by tapeworm larvae”).
    Synonyms:
    gid

Verb

giddy (third-person singular simple present giddies, present participle giddying, simple past and past participle giddied)

  1. (archaic, transitive) To make (someone or something) dizzy or unsteady; to dizzy.
    • A nevv faſhion of apparrell creepeth no ſooner into vſe, but preſently he blameth and diſpraiſeth the olde, and that vvith ſo earneſt a reſolution, and vniverſall a conſent, that you vvould ſay, it is ſome kinde of madnes, or ſelfe-fond humor, that giddieth his vnderſtanding.1603, Michel de Montaigne, “Of Ancient Customes”, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book I, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC, page 161
    • [T]he footmen vſe it [opium] too as a preſeruer of ſtrength, and vvhich is ſtrangeſt, ſo giddies them, that in a conſtant dreame or dizzineſſe, they run ſleeping not knovving vvhom they meet, and yet miſſe not their intended places: […]1634, T[homas] H[erbert], “A Discourse of the Life and Habit of the Persians at this Present”, in A Relation of Some Yeares Trauaile, Begunne Anno 1626. into Afrique and the Greater Asia, […]...
  2. (archaic, intransitive) To become dizzy or unsteady.
    • Giddied, he gave up a moment's purchase of ground.1981, Nadine Gordimer, July’s People, 1st UK edition, London: Jonathan Cape […], →ISBN, page 98
  3. (archaic, intransitive, obsolete) To move around something or spin rapidly; to reel; to whirl.
    • [B]y chance, a sudden north-wind fetch'd, / With an extreme sea, quite about again / Our whole endeavours, and our course constrain / To giddy round, and with our bow'd sails greet / Dreadful Maleia, calling back our fleet / As far forth as Cythera.1614–1615, Homer, “The Ninth Book of Homer’s Odysseys”, in Geo[rge] Chapman, transl., Homer’s Odysses. […], London: […] Rich[ard] Field [and William Jaggard], for Nathaniell Butter, published 1615...
    Synonyms:
    vertiginate

Proper noun capitalized: Giddy

Giddy

  1. A surname.

giddy meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

giddy in Hindi

गिड्डी, गिडी

giddy in Tamil

துடி

giddy in Marathi

गिडी, गिड्डी

giddy in Urdu

ڈگمگ, سبک سر
More languagesFewer languages
giddy in Bengali
মাথা ঘোরা, চপল, অতিশয় আনন্দিত, উত্তেজিত
giddy in Telugu
గిడ్డీ
giddy in Malayalam
തലചുറ്റുന്ന, ഉന്മത്തമായ, മന്ദിച്ച
giddy in Kannada
ತಲೆಸುತ್ತುವ, ತಲೆ ತಿರುಗುವ, ತಲೆ ಸುತ್ತಿ ಬೀಳುವ, ತಲೆ ಗಿರ್ರನೆ ತಿರುಗುವ
giddy in Punjabi
ਗਿੱਡੀ
giddy in Gujarati
ગિડી, ગિડ્ડી
giddy in Odia
ଗିଡି
giddy in Nepali
गिडी, गिड्डी, गिडी गर्न
giddy in Thai
เวียนหัว
giddy in Myanmar
မူး mu:

Examples of giddy in a sentence

  • I wish you wouldn't keep appearing and vanishing so suddenly: you make one quite giddy.1865 November (indicated as 1866), Lewis Carroll [pseudonym; Charles Lutwidge Dodgson], “Pig and Pepper”, in Alice’s Adventures in...
  • But it makes them giddy to look so they pull up their skirts …1922 February 2, James Joyce, “[Episode 7: Aeolus]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company […], →OCLC, part II [Odyssey], page 141:
  • VVilt thou vpon the high and giddy maſſe, / Seale vp the ſhip-boies eies, and rocke his braines, […]c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henrie the Fourth, […], quarto edition, London: […] V[alentine]...
  • [A]ll those changes, that are taken for the Giddy turns of Fortune's Wheel, shall serve to approach him the faster to the blest Mansion he would arrive at.1665, Robert Boyle, “A Discourse Touching Occasional Meditations. Chapter VI.”, in Occasional Reflections upon Several Subiects. Whereto is...

All 24 example sentences with giddy

Synonyms of giddy

30 more synonymsFewer synonyms

All synonyms of giddy

Forms of giddy

Adjective
comparativegiddier
superlativegiddiest
Noun
pluralgiddies
Verb
third-person singular presentgiddies
present participlegiddying
past participlegiddied
pastgiddied

Origin of giddy

The adjective is derived from Middle English gidi, gedy, gydy (“demonically controlled or possessed; crazy, insane; foolish, idiotic, ridiculous, unwise; unsure; (rare) dizzy, shaky; (rare) of an animal: crazed, out of control; a fool”) [and other forms], from Old English gidiġ, gydiġ (“possessed by a demon or spirit, insane, mad”), from Proto-West Germanic *gudīg (“ghostly, spirited”, literally “possessed by a god or spirit”), from *god (“god”) + *-ig, *-g (suffix forming adjectives with the senses of being, doing, or having). Thus the word's elements correspond to god + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’, forming adjectives). The noun and the verb are derived from the adjective.

Words formed from giddy

Phrases with giddy

Words that rhyme with giddy

Questions about giddy

What does giddy mean?
Giddy means feeling a sense of spinning in the head, causing a perception of unsteadiness and being about to fall down; dizzy.
What is giddy in Hindi?
Giddy in Hindi is गिड्डी, गिडी. See Giddy meaning in Hindi.
How do you use giddy in a sentence?
I wish you wouldn't keep appearing and vanishing so suddenly: you make one quite giddy.
What part of speech is giddy?
Giddy can be an adjective, a noun, a verb or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce giddy?
Giddy is pronounced /ˈɡɪd.i/ (UK).

Words near giddy in the dictionary

  1. giddinesses
  2. Giddings
  3. Giddins
  4. giddisome
  5. giddup
  6. giddy
  7. giddy as a windmill
  8. giddy limit
  9. giddy up
  10. giddy-brained
  11. giddy-go-round

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: giddy (page history and authors); Giddy (page history and authors); giddy (Hindi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); giddy (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); giddy (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); giddy (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); Giddy (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); giddy (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); giddy (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); giddy (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); giddy (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); giddy (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); giddy (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); giddy (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-giddy.ogg.

Cite this entry: “giddy.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/giddy. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.