Tailspin
Definition, Meaning & Examples
Part of speech noun
Quick meaning: Tailspin is a noun meaning (aviation) The rapid, uncontrollable descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral.
Meaning
(aviation) The rapid, uncontrollable descent of an aircraft in a steep spiral.
More Meanings
- (figuratively) A severe mental or emotional collapse; emotional breakdown.
- (figuratively) Any sharp, sustained, often uncontrollable descent or decline.
- Of an aircraft: to go into a rapid, uncontrollable descent in a steep spiral.
- (figurative) To go into a sharp, sustained, often uncontrollable descent or decline.
Example Sentences
The present stock tailspin proves bankruptcy is imminent.
The loss of the third engine threw the plane into a tailspin.
Just hours after leaving the institution, she suffered another tailspin.
St. Louis, the fourth-largest U.S. city in 1900, is fading fast […] . Jobs, and airline, an educated population—all gone or in a tailspin.
Word Forms
- tailspins
- tailspinning
- tailspun
- tailspinned
Synonyms for tailspin
Depending on context, synonyms include spin.
Related Words
Related dictionary entries include spin, spinout, skid, sideslip, nosedive, tailslide.
Related Dictionary Tools
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.