What does reverse mean?
Reverse means to turn something around, to move or point in the opposite direction, or to undo an earlier decision or course of action. It is widely used in formal contexts: a court may reverse a ruling, a company may reverse a policy, and a trend may reverse its direction. As an adjective, reverse can describe something facing backward, arranged in the opposite order, or opposed to the usual arrangement. As a noun, a reverse means a change in the opposite direction or the opposite side of something. The word is also used in expressions such as “in reverse” and “reverse gear.” Its basic sense concerns direction and order, but it often carries the additional implication of undoing, overturning, or transforming something that had previously been established.
To turn something around, back, or in the opposite direction, or to change something to the opposite condition or order.
"The government reversed its earlier decision to postpone the election."
The verb is transitive when it means to overturn or undo something, as in “reverse a decision,” and intransitive when it describes changing direction.
Opposite to the usual or expected direction, order, or arrangement; backward.
"The vehicle was fitted with reverse lights."
Often used in technical or formal contexts involving direction, sequence, or orientation.
A change to the opposite direction or condition; the opposite of something.
"The project’s fortunes experienced a reverse."
A formal and relatively literary noun, often used in the phrase “take a reverse” or in the sense of a setback.
In or toward the opposite direction or order.
"The dancers moved in reverse when the music changed."
Less common than the adjective and usually encountered in technical descriptions or with the phrase “in reverse.”
In 1806, the French inventor Nicolas Appert preserved food by sealing it in glass and heating it, creating an early form of the idea that later became canned food; the process reversed the usual direction of decay rather than stopping it entirely.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does reverse come from?
The word comes through Old French revers from Latin reversus, the past participle of revertere, meaning “to turn back” or “to turn the other way.” The Latin root vertere means “to turn” and also underlies related English words such as convert, invert, revert, and verse. Over time, reverse developed from a literal sense of turning in an opposite direction into the broader modern meanings of undoing a decision or changing something to the opposite condition.
Related word forms
How reverse is actually used
Reverse is especially common in formal and public contexts when discussing decisions, trends, or changes of direction. In descriptions of movement or orientation, it can sound more technical or emphatic than simply backward.
Easily confused with reverse
Reverse means to turn something around or overturn it, whereas revise means to correct, improve, or reconsider something, especially a text or plan.