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I dove headlong to the floor.
plunged headlong into the crowd in pursuit of the purse snatcher
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'headlong.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Headlong appeared in Middle English as "hedlong," an alteration of the older "hedling" or "hedlynge." "Hedling" is a combination of the Middle English "hed" ("head") and "-ling," an adverb suffix which means "in such a direction or manner." Thus, "hedling" originally meant "with the head foremost" or, if you will, "in the direction of the head." By the late 1400s, influenced by its use in the compound word endlong, the adjective "long" began to be regarded as a suffix and a variant of "-ling." It was this substitution of "-ling" with "-long" that led to the replacement of words like "sideling" and "headling" with the now more familiar "sidelong" and "headlong."
First Known Use: 14th century
in the meaning defined at sense 1
See Words from the same yearcursorily, hastily, hotfoot, hurriedly, pell-mell, precipitately, precipitously, rashly;
calculatingly, circumspectly, designedly;
falteringly, haltingly, hesitantly, hesitatingly, tentatively;
headfirst, headily, hotheadedly, impatiently, impetuously, impulsively, recklessly, thoughtlessly;
on the spur of the moment;
terrified forest creatures in a headlong retreat from the rapidly spreading fire
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'headlong.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
circa 1533
cursory, flying, hasty, helter-skelter, hurried, overhasty, pell-mell, precipitate, precipitous, rash, rushed;
calculated, calculating, measured;
circumspect, foresighted, forethoughtful;
drawn-out, extended, long-term, prolonged;
faltering, hesitant, hesitating, tentative;
dallying, dawdling, laggard, leisurely, poky (or pokey), shilly-shallying, slow;
headstrong, heady, hotheaded, impatient, impetuous, impulsive, madcap, reckless, unadvised;
horseback, impromptu, makeshift, offhand, offhanded, off-the-cuff, rush, slapdash, snap, spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment;
: with the head leading
: without taking time to think about your actions
See words that rhyme with headlong Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for headlong Spanish Central: Translation of headlong Nglish: Translation of headlong for Spanish speakers
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