reverse

American  

[ri-vurs] / rɪˈvɜrs /

adjective

1. opposite or contrary in position, direction, order, or character.

   an impression reverse to what was intended; in reverse sequence.

   Synonyms:

   converse

   Antonyms:

   same

2. with the back or rear part toward the observer.

   the reverse side of a fabric.

3. pertaining to or producing movement in a mechanism opposite to that made under ordinary running conditions.

   a reverse gear; a reverse turbine.

4. acting in a manner opposite or contrary to that which is usual, as an appliance or apparatus.

5. noting or pertaining to an image like that seen in a mirror; backward; reversed.

6. noting or pertaining to printed matter in which what is normally white, as the page of a book, appears as black, and vice versa.

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noun

• reverses
  plural

1. the opposite or contrary of something.

   Synonyms:

   counterpart, converse

2. the back or rear of anything.

3. Numismatics.

   1. the side of a coin, medal, etc., that does not bear the principal design (opposed to obverse).

   2. the side of an ancient coin that was struck by the upper die.

4. an adverse change of fortune; a misfortune, check, or defeat.

   to meet with an unexpected reverse.

   Synonyms:

   affliction, misadventure, mishap

5. Machinery.

   1. the condition of being reversed.

      to throw an engine into reverse.

   2. a reversing mechanism.

6. Football. a play on offense in which one back running laterally hands the ball to another back who is running in the opposite direction and who then makes either an end run or a cutback.

7. Bridge. reverse bid.

8. Printing. printed matter in which areas that normally appear as white are printed in black, and vice versa.

verb (used with object)

• reverses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reversed,
  past participle,  past
• reversing
  present participle

1. to turn in an opposite position; transpose.

   The printer accidently reversed two chapters of the book.

2. to turn in the opposite direction; send on the opposite course.

3. to turn inside out or upside down.

4. to change the direction of running of (a mechanism).

5. to cause (a mechanism) to run in a direction opposite to that in which it commonly runs.

6. to revoke or annul (a decree, judgment, etc.).

   to reverse a verdict.

   Synonyms:

   overthrow, rescind, countermand, veto, repeal

7. to alter to the opposite in character or tendency; change completely.

8. to turn in the opposite order.

   to reverse the process of evolution.

9. Printing. to print as a reverse.

verb (used without object)

• reverses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reversed,
  past participle,  past
• reversing
  present participle

1. to shift into reverse gear.

   The driver drove forward, then reversed.

2. (of a mechanism) to be reversed.

3. to turn or move in the opposite or contrary direction, as in dancing.

4. Bridge. to make a reverse bid.

reverse British  

/ rɪˈvɜːs /

verb

1. to turn or set in an opposite direction, order, or position

2. to change into something different or contrary; alter completely

   reverse one's policy

3. (also intr) to move or cause to move backwards or in an opposite direction

   to reverse a car

4. to run (machinery, etc) in the opposite direction to normal

5. to turn inside out

6. law to revoke or set aside (a judgment, decree, etc); annul

7. (often foll by out) to print from plates so made that white lettering or design of (a page, text, display, etc) appears on a black or coloured background

8. military to turn one's arms upside down, esp as a token of mourning

9. to make a telephone call at the recipient's expense

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noun

1. the opposite or contrary of something

2. the back or rear side of something

3. a change to an opposite position, state, or direction

4. a change for the worse; setback or defeat

5. 1. the mechanism or gears by which machinery, a vehicle, etc, can be made to reverse its direction

   2. ( as modifier )

      reverse gear

6. the side of a coin bearing a secondary design Compare obverse

7. 1. printed matter in which normally black or coloured areas, esp lettering, appear white, and vice versa

   2. ( as modifier )

      reverse plates

8. in an opposite or backward direction

9. emphatically not; not at all

   he was the reverse of polite when I called

adjective

1. opposite or contrary in direction, position, order, nature, etc; turned backwards

2. back to front; inverted

3. operating or moving in a manner contrary to that which is usual

4. denoting or relating to a mirror image

Synonym Usage

See opposite. Reverse, invert agree in meaning to change into a contrary position, order, or relation. To reverse is to place or move something so that it is facing in the opposite direction from the one faced previously: to reverse from right to left; to reverse a decision. To invert is to turn upside down: to invert a stamp in printing; to invert a bowl over a plate.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prereverse
  noun
• reverser
  noun
• half-reversed
  adjective
• nonreverse
  adjective
• nonreversed
  adjective
• nonreversing
  adjective
• unreversed
  adjective
• reversedly
  adverb
• reversely
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• reverses
  plural

Participles

• reversing
  present
• reversed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• reverse
  simple
• reverses
  simple
• have reversed
  perfect
• has reversed
  perfect
• am reversing
  progressive
• are reversing
  progressive
• is reversing
  progressive
• have been reversing
  perfect progressive
• has been reversing
  perfect progressive

Past

• reversed
  simple
• had reversed
  perfect
• was reversing
  progressive
• were reversing
  progressive
• had been reversing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will reverse
  simple
• will have reversed
  perfect
• will be reversing
  progressive
• will have been reversing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of reverse

First recorded in 1275–1325; (for the noun) Middle English revers, from Old French, from Latin reversus “turned back,” past participle of revertere “to turn back” ( see revert); (for the verb) Middle English reversen, from Old French reverser, from Late Latin reversāre “to turn around,” literally, “to turn back repeatedly,” from revertere

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Explanation

To go in reverse, you back up. If you reverse your position, you suddenly take the opposite side of the argument. If you reverse your fortunes, your bad luck turns good, or your good luck turns bad. Oops. The Latin word revertere means “turn back.” To reverse means to turn back, take the opposite direction, go the other way. Many things can be reversed: you can reverse a decision, you can reverse a car — by putting it in the gear called "reverse." You can reverse a political argument, a promotion, even some surgical procedures, but you can never reverse the steady progress of time, no matter how many Botox injections you get.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

reverse reverses reversed reversing

While that by itself doesn’t reverse the primary uptrend, “it does suggest a near-term consolidation/pullback is likely,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

When my mom and I travel together these days, our child-parent roles reverse.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

The federal government, which has dispatched 11 aircraft and around 300 firefighters to the zone, expects to reverse the situation "in the coming days," Capobianco said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

The researchers then asked an even more interesting question: If declining Menin contributes to aging, could restoring the protein reverse some of the damage?

From Science Daily ● Oct. 12, 2026

They don’t know I got two draw fours, a wild card, a yellow skip, and a red reverse.

From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas

A mistranslation of that “hold” instruction as “adhere to your medication” dangerously reverses the meaning, while being similar enough that it might score decently.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

The move had been widely anticipated and reverses his insistence he would not seek re-election, which the Slovenian initially outlined in February 2024.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

The decline reverses two quarters of growth in the first half of the year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

“Hey, come here, piggy piggy, come here, baby,” he said in one TikTok video, his bike brakes squealing as he reverses direction to catch up with the pink, fuzzy fugitive.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

But, unlike Brent, he reverses course, stunning at warp speed—lunging, legs, arms, foil extending, then retreating.

From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

NPH is one of the few causes of dementia that can be controlled or reversed with surgical treatment, usually involving the placement of a shunt.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

"Additional research is needed to better understand what is driving these trends and how they can be reversed."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026

In a post on Facebook on Saturday, Zelensky said the deal needed to be reversed.

From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026

When Wilson reversed course after the election, Debs did not.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

In fact, the issue was never raised at the convention, and the censure was never reversed.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling

“It’s about reversing the current logic,” said Éric Coquerel, a France Unbowed lawmaker and a lieutenant of Mélenchon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Arasha enjoys a few choice manipulative moves in her litany of parts, reversing situations that seem to have no obvious good outcome.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

It set 23 targets for halting and reversing nature loss by 2030, including reducing pollution, protecting threatened species and conserving 30 percent of the world's land and oceans.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

In a study published in Bioactive Materials, scientists found that the medication lacosamide can serve two purposes in osteoarthritis, reducing joint pain while also reversing cartilage damage.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026

Looking back, I think it was then that I quietly began to let go of the idea that there was any reversing his course, that he'd ever belong solely to me and the girls.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

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Related Words

• alter
• annul
• dismantle
• invalidate
• lift
• modify
• nullify
• overrule
• overturn
• quash
• repeal
• rescind
• revoke
• set aside
• undo

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