keel over

keel over idiom
Collapse, as if in a faint; also, faint. For example, When she heard the awful news, she keeled over. This term alludes to a vessel rolling on its keel and capsizing. [Mid-1800s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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