noun
vertigo
VUR-tih-goh
noun
1
A spinning sensation and loss of balance, often triggered by heights or inner-ear problems.
"She gets vertigo whenever she looks down from a tall building."
"His vertigo was caused by a minor inner-ear infection."
How to Use Vertigo
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA dizzy, spinning feeling, often set off by heights or balance problems.
Common mistake
Vertigo is not simply a fear of heights (that's acrophobia) — it's a genuine physical sensation of spinning or imbalance.
Easily confused with
acrophobia
Common pairings
suffer from vertigo
a bout of vertigo
Word Forms
vertigos plural, vertigoes plural
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She gets _____ whenever she looks down from a tall building.
Etymology
From Latin vertigo, "a whirling", from vertere, "to turn".