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light-headed

light-headed

15 4.2
Feeling dizzy and weak like you might faint
  • adjective
  • /ˈlaɪtˌhɛdɪd/
translation icon : mareado
  • After standing up too quickly, I felt a bit light-headed and had to sit down.
  • feel light-headed
  • get light-headed
  • light-headed and dizzy

The other thing is if we get light headed, maybe don't do it as long.

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Examples

  • Morgan felt light-headed, empty of thought, of needs and wants, of everything but the magic's fire.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • His legs and back were horribly stiff, and he felt light-headed from lack of food.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • All right, I'm getting a little light headed from all the breathing.

  • I feel a bit light headed, but that's about it.

  • Hey, oxygen is actually higher than on Earth by nine percent, so you might feel a bit light-headed.

  • I felt weak, light-headed, as if I had not eaten for days.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • If I don't eat every few hours, i get light-headed.

  • The sour taste wouldn't wash away at first, but finally she sat back, feeling light-headed but otherwise much better.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • As the pressure let up, sparks danced before her eyes, and she felt dizzy, light-headed.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • We were just finishing up," I told her, feeling dizzy and light-headed as Robert made the necessary introductions.

    Fiction book (1997)

Synonyms

dizzy
vslight-headed
168 1.0

Feeling like the room or world is turning and you may fall

emphasizes faintness and general weakness as well as spinning
faint
vslight-headed
38 2.7

Feeling weak and about to lose consciousness

includes dizziness as well as the near loss of consciousness
woozy
vslight-headed
29 5.7

Feeling dizzy and unsteady, as if you might faint

adds clear dizziness to the feeling of weakness and faintness
groggy
vslight-headed
21 5.6

Feeling weak, unsteady, and confused after being very tired, ill, or hit on the head

is the more general physical dizziness feeling with fainting risk
feeling dizzy
vslight-headed
16 3.8

Your body or the room seems to spin and you may lose balance

highlights personal weakness or faintness alongside the spinning sensation
lightheaded
vslight-headed
14 4.4

Feeling dizzy and as if you might faint

has identical sense but appears hyphenated in the source form
swirly
vslight-headed
  • Informal
1 6.0

Feeling dizzy as if things are turning around you

is broader, also stressing bodily weakness and near fainting
whirly
vslight-headed
  • Informal
1 8.6

Feeling dizzy and light-headed and unable to think clearly

focuses more on physical weakness and the possibility of fainting
twirly
vslight-headed
1 7.7

Feeling dizzy after spinning or excitement

is more about general dizziness and a real fainting risk
aswim
vslight-headed
  • Archaic
9.8

Dizzy and confused in the head

stresses bodily weakness and the sense of possibly fainting

Antonyms

186 1.3

Firm and unlikely to be moved or upset

How Dizzy

unconscious
243 4.2
faint
38 2.7
dizzy
168 1.0
light-headed
15 4.2
unsteady
16 3.3

Surface Forms

light-headed positive
light-headed positive

Morphology

light-headed = light + head (transparent) = light + head + ed

The adjective is built from 'light' + 'headed' (head + -ed) and the meaning 'having a light head' maps straightforwardly to feeling dizzy.

Etymology

Light-headed comes from light ('not heavy') plus headed (about the head), so it gives the image of your head feeling 'light', as if there is less weight in it. So when you are light-headed you feel dizzy, weak, or like you might faint.