[There’s a Word for That] When Life Won’t Slow Down

News.
Group chats.
Work deadlines.
Algorithm updates.

You step away for five minutes —
and the world has evolved.

Your phone is buzzing.
The headlines have changed.
And your brain? Still trying to catch up.

Sound familiar?

There’s a word for that.
One that captures the speed, the overload,
and that mentally dizzy feeling
when everything keeps spinning.

　

The word?

目まぐるしい（めまぐるしい）

Let’s break it down:

• 目（め） = eye
• まぐるしい = from まぐる, “to spin”

Put together?
A word for the dizzy rush of nonstop change.

It’s not just “busy.”
It’s chaos in motion.

　

Real-life examples

成長のスピードが目まぐるしい。
The pace of growth? Changing by the minute.

国際情勢の変化が目まぐるしい。
Global events are shifting nonstop.

とんぼ返りの連続で、頭が目まぐるしくなった。
Even your own acrobatics leave your head spinning.

　

When to use 目まぐるしい

• Your to-do list doubles overnight
• The news app gives you a headache
• Workplace drama changes hourly
• You survive a software update every Tuesday

　

Learner Tip

目まぐるしい goes beyond “busy.”
It’s:

• Speed
• Change
• Sensory overload

Kind of like scrolling TikTok for too long…
and forgetting what year it is.

You’ll often see:

• 目まぐるしい + noun (e.g. 目まぐるしい変化)
• Or it’s used to describe fast, unpredictable situations

　

One-line summary

目まぐるしい:
When scrolling feels like sprinting — and your thoughts trip.

You don’t just live in a fast world.
You live in a 目まぐるしい one.