reversion

American  

[ri-vur-zhuhn, -shuhn] / rɪˈvɜr ʒən, -ʃən /

noun

• reversions
  plural

1. the act of turning something the reverse way.

2. the state of being so turned; reversal.

3. the act of reverting; return to a former practice, belief, condition, etc.

4. Biology.

   1. reappearance of ancestral characters that have been absent in intervening generations.

   2. return to an earlier or primitive type; atavism.

5. Law.

   1. the returning of an estate to the grantor or the grantor's heirs after the interest granted expires.

   2. an estate which so returns.

   3. the right of succeeding to an estate.

6. Archaic. the remains, especially of food or drink after a meal.

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reversion British  

/ rɪˈvɜːʃən /

noun

1. a return to or towards an earlier condition, practice, or belief; act of reverting

2. the act of reversing or the state of being reversed; reversal

3. biology

   1. the return of individuals, organs, etc, to a more primitive condition or type

   2. the reappearance of primitive characteristics in an individual or group

4. property law

   1. an interest in an estate that reverts to the grantor or his heirs at the end of a period, esp at the end of the life of a grantee

   2. an estate so reverting

   3. the right to succeed to such an estate

5. the benefit payable on the death of a life-insurance policyholder

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonreversion
  noun
• reversionary
  adjective
• reversionally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• reversions
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of reversion

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin reversiōn- (stem of reversiō ) a turning back. See reverse, -ion

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

reversion reversions

The recent backlash against AI-generated music has prompted “a reversion back to the real” with bands using more instruments and needing more space to record, Mihalka said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

In a way, this move feels like a reversion to the fan magazines of the Old Hollywood era.

From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026

There was still time for some curious changes and an all too familiar reversion to type at Fulham on the final day as the limp visitors suffered a 17th league defeat of the campaign.

From BBC ● May 27, 2026

“However, as the natural gas market looks ahead to early summer, any seeming reversion to the recent trend of hotter summers could stir bullish sentiment,” Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics says in a note.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026

This was, in other words, an adaptation of his atmospheric steam engine, or rather a reversion to his earlier plan for a wind-gun powered by atmospheric pressure.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Experts say these reversions, though disappointing, seem to be extremely rare, and the vaccine appears much more genetically stable than its predecessor.

From Science Magazine ● Mar. 22, 2023

She added that, of course, tactical reversions to the ancient and “primitive” were recurrent modernist tropes.

From The New Yorker ● Jul. 15, 2019

As Bob Dylan reversions a song for a compilation EP that turns classic tunes into same-sex wedding tracks, we look at how gender lyrics have evolved over the years.

From BBC ● Apr. 7, 2018

According to the figures, state officials had estimated that there would be $30 million in reversions, or temporary reductions, from state agencies for the year.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 3, 2015

In succeeding generations the reversions are preponderant, and, supposing no care is taken to prevent it, the whole of the offspring gradually go back to the ancestral type.

From Disease in Plants by H. Marshall Ward

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