2
: without deliberation : recklessly
rushes headlong into danger
3
: without pause or delay
1
archaic
: steep, precipitous
2
: lacking in calmness or restraint : precipitate
a headlong torrent of emotion
3
: plunging headfirst
Did you know?
Headlong was born out of the Middle English word hedling, a combination of hed ("head") and -ling, an adverb suffix meaning "in such a direction or manner." Thus, hedling meant "with the head first”; it was originally applied to descriptions of falling, or to downward movement. Likely due to the influence of the words along and long, -ling came to be understood as a variant of the adverb suffix -long, a development that carried headlong, as well as sidelong, along with it.
Examples of headlong in a Sentence
Adverb
I dove headlong to the floor.
plunged headlong into the crowd in pursuit of the purse snatcher
Adjective
terrified forest creatures in a headlong retreat from the rapidly spreading fire
Recent Examples on the Web
South Florida Sun Sentinel, Sun Sentinel, 19 May 2025
The Devils barrels headlong into campy, often overbearing jokiness, with too many catchphrases and one-liners repeated too often that never quite land the way Logen’s do in The First Law, or Glokta’s for that matter.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 17 May 2025
Sarah Beckwith, New Yorker, 26 May 2025
But swirling around it are immigration restrictions, headlong and haphazard reductions in Federal spending and a separate but related confidence shock weighing on consumer behavior.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 22 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for headlong
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Adverb
Hopes for a spring bounce have run headlong into economic turmoil.
—South Florida Sun Sentinel, Sun Sentinel, 19 May 2025
The Devils barrels headlong into campy, often overbearing jokiness, with too many catchphrases and one-liners repeated too often that never quite land the way Logen’s do in The First Law, or Glokta’s for that matter.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 17 May 2025
Adjective
This momentary pause, this saving interruption of the headlong, breathless trajectory of rape or murder, admitted a kind of compassion, pity, even tenderness, halting injustice in its tracks.
—Sarah Beckwith, New Yorker, 26 May 2025
But swirling around it are immigration restrictions, headlong and haphazard reductions in Federal spending and a separate but related confidence shock weighing on consumer behavior.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 22 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for headlong
Cite this Entry
“Headlong.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/headlong. Accessed 1 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
headlong
1 of 2 adverb
head·long
ˈhed-ˈlȯŋ 
1
2
: without careful thought : recklessly
headlong
2 of 2 adjective1
: lacking in calmness or restraint : rash
headlong flight
2
: plunging headfirst
a headlong dive
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