overturn
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cause (something) to turn onto its side, face, or back; upset.
to overturn a vase.
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to destroy the power or validity of; overthrow; defeat: The new findings have not overturned the theory itself.
The conspiracy finally overturned the regime.
The new findings have not overturned the theory itself.
- Synonyms:
- conquer
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to reverse (an official or legal decision).
Rather than accept defeat, the company filed a complaint in federal appeals court to overturn the ruling.
verb (used without object)
noun
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the act of overturning.
-
the state of being overturned.
verb
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to turn or cause to turn from an upright or normal position
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(tr) to overthrow or destroy
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(tr) to invalidate; reverse
the bill was passed in the Commons but overturned in the Lords
noun
Synonym Usage
See upset.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have overturnedperfect
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has overturnedperfect 3rd person singular
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am overturningprogressive 1st person singular
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has been overturningperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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is overturningprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been overturningperfect progressive
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are overturningprogressive
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overturnssingular 3rd person
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overturningparticiple
Past
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had overturnedperfect
-
were overturningprogressive plural
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had been overturningperfect progressive
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was overturningprogressive singular
-
overturnedsimple
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overturnedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of overturn
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English; see origin at over-, turn
Explanation
To overturn something is to either flip it upside down or to invalidate it. An amateur kayaker might overturn her boat, while a judge may decide to overturn a previous judgment. When you overturn a wheelbarrow or a tricycle, you literally turn it over. When judges overturn earlier rulings or voters overturn laws, they make them invalid, essentially reversing them. An earlier, more intense metaphorical meaning of this word was "violently overthrow a ruler or rulers." Overturn was originally used in the 13th century to describe a turning wheel.
Vocabulary lists containing overturn
Ban This Book
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This Week In Words: December 5–11, 2020
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From the Desk of Zoe Washington
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Simonsig will be engaged in a more serious battle with Overturn – a front-runner who could trouble the odds-on favourite.
From The Guardian • Mar. 11, 2013
Simonsig is also rated at miserly odds to beat his closest rival, Overturn, in Tuesday's Arkle.
From The Guardian • Mar. 11, 2013
In the National Hunt action at Sandown, Overturn led all the way to win the Beginners' Chase.
From BBC • Nov. 10, 2012
His aim, in four lectures at the London School of Economics: Overturn the theories of John Maynard Keynes, and prove that recessions were not caused by a lack of desire from customers to buy goods.
From BusinessWeek • Oct. 7, 2011
Urged by despair and by hope, what can Drudgery do, but rise, as predicted, and produce the General Overturn?
From The French Revolution by Carlyle, Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
