A method and apparatus for switching operation modes of a terminal. The method comprises: when a terminal is operated, detecting whether a temperature difference between a left side and a right side of the terminal is changed, the left side and the right side being a left side and a right side when a current display interface of the terminal displays (S102); and when the temperature difference between the left side and the right side of the terminal is changed, switching an operation mode in a virtual menu in the terminal into an operation mode corresponding to the changed temperature difference (S104), the operation modes comprising a left-hand operation mode and a right-hand operation mode. By means of the technical solution, the problem of inconvenience caused by single-hand operation in a large-screen of a smart terminal in the related art is solved, thereby achieving the effect of improving user experience.
