Definition of "topsy-turvy" []

• With the top downward and the bottom up; upside-down. (adverb)
• In or into a state of utter disorder or confusion: "turning our ordered life topsy-turvy” ( Anne Tyler). (adverb)
• Turned or positioned upside down; inverted. (adjective)
• Confused or disordered. (adjective)
• The quality or condition of being topsy-turvy. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The Bushmen suggest that we have turned the basic truths of living upside-down and that is why practically everything in our lives, from the global economy to our homes, schools, politics, and ecology, is in such a topsy-turvy mess."
• "He showed some mettle and remained in the game, which was a topsy-turvy affair."
• "The ticket taker stares in disbelief at the topsy-turvy fun house."