転てん倒とう

て

ん

と

う

Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

1

noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', intransitive verb

fall; tumble; topple over

Physical falling or toppling, typically of a person or object losing balance and going down. Intransitive.

階かい段だんで転てん倒とうしてけがをした。
I fell down the stairs and got injured.
強きょう風ふうで看かん板ばんが転てん

倒とう

し

た

。

The signboard toppled over in the strong wind.

2

noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb, intransitive verb

reversal; inversion; turning upside-down

Abstract or figurative reversal of order, position, or relationship. Can be used both transitively and intransitively.

主しゅ客かく転てん倒とうした議ぎ論ろんになってしまった。
The discussion ended up with the priorities reversed.
その政せい策さくは因いん果が関かん係けいを転てん倒とうさせている。
That policy inverts the cause-and-effect relationship.

3

noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', intransitive verb

getting upset; losing one's composure

Used almost exclusively in the set phrase 気が転倒する, meaning to be so upset or flustered that one cannot think straight. Intransitive.

Written forms

転てん倒とうUsage100%
Standard kanji spelling for all senses.
顛てん倒とうUsage<1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rarely used kanji form; 転倒 is overwhelmingly preferred.

Kanji

転revolve, turn around, change
倒overthrow, fall, collapse
顛overturn, summit, origin

Similar words

倒たおれる
倒れる is a more common, general verb for falling down or collapsing, while 転倒 emphasizes tumbling or toppling over, often with a sense of overturning.
逆ぎゃく転てん
逆転 means a reversal or turnaround, often in a competitive context (e.g., a come-from-behind victory), whereas 転倒 refers to an inversion of order or logic.

Etymology

Compound of 転 (turn, revolve, change) and 倒 (fall, collapse, invert). The combination conveys the idea of turning over and falling, extended to abstract reversal and mental upset.