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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

tailspin.

The rapid, uncontrollable descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral.

8 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun
  1. The rapid, uncontrollable descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral.

    The loss of the third engine threw the plane into a tailspin.
  2. A severe mental or emotional collapse; emotional breakdown.

    figuratively
    Just hours after leaving the institution, she suffered another tailspin.
  3. Any sharp, sustained, often uncontrollable descent or decline.

    figuratively
    The present stock tailspin proves bankruptcy is imminent.
Where this word comes from

From tail + spin.

verb
  1. Of an aircraft: to go into a rapid, uncontrollable descent in a steep spiral.

  2. To go into a sharp, sustained, often uncontrollable descent or decline.

    figuratively
Where this word comes from

From tail + spin.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.