| Learning / English Dictionary |
REVERSE
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Turning in the opposite direction
Synonyms:
reversal; reverse; reversion; turnabout; turnaround
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("reverse" is a kind of...):
change of direction; reorientation (the act of changing the direction in which something is oriented)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "reverse"):
about-face; about turn (act of pivoting 180 degrees, especially in a military formation)
u-turn (complete reversal of direction of travel)
Derivation:
reverse (change to the contrary)
reverse (turn inside out or upside down)
reverse (reversed (turned backward) in order or nature or effect)
Sense 2
Meaning:
(American football) a running play in which a back running in one direction hands the ball to a back running in the opposite direction
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("reverse" is a kind of...):
run; running; running game; running play ((American football) a play in which a player attempts to carry the ball through or past the opposing team)
Domain category:
American football; American football game (a game played by two teams of 11 players on a rectangular field 100 yards long; teams try to get possession of the ball and advance it across the opponents goal line in a series of (running or passing) plays)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "reverse"):
double reverse ((American football) a running play in which a first reverse is followed by a second reverse)
Sense 3
Meaning:
The gears by which the motion of a machine can be reversed
Synonyms:
reverse; reverse gear
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("reverse" is a kind of...):
gear; gear mechanism (a mechanism for transmitting motion for some specific purpose (as the steering gear of a vehicle))
Holonyms ("reverse" is a part of...):
auto; automobile; car; machine; motorcar (a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine)
Derivation:
reverse (of the transmission gear causing backward movement in a motor vehicle)
Sense 4
Meaning:
The side of a coin or medal that does not bear the principal design
Synonyms:
reverse; verso
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("reverse" is a kind of...):
side (an extended outer surface of an object)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "reverse"):
tail ((usually plural) the reverse side of a coin that does not bear the representation of a person's head)
Holonyms ("reverse" is a part of...):
coin (a flat metal piece (usually a disc) used as money)
Antonym:
obverse (the side of a coin or medal bearing the principal stamp or design)
Sense 5
Meaning:
An unfortunate happening that hinders or impedes; something that is thwarting or frustrating
Synonyms:
black eye; blow; reversal; reverse; setback
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("reverse" is a kind of...):
happening; natural event; occurrence; occurrent (an event that happens)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "reverse"):
whammy (a serious or devastating setback)
Sense 6
Meaning:
A relation of direct opposition
Example:
we thought Sue was older than Bill but just the reverse was true
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas
Hypernyms ("reverse" is a kind of...):
oppositeness; opposition (the relation between opposed entities)
Derivation:
reverse (change to the contrary)
reverse (cancel officially)
reverse (reversed (turned backward) in order or nature or effect)
II. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Reversed (turned backward) in order or nature or effect
Synonyms:
inverse; reverse
Classified under:
Similar:
backward (directed or facing toward the back or rear)
Derivation:
reverse (turning in the opposite direction)
reverse (a relation of direct opposition)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Directed or moving toward the rear
Example:
a rearward movement
Synonyms:
rearward; reverse
Classified under:
Similar:
backward (directed or facing toward the back or rear)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Of the transmission gear causing backward movement in a motor vehicle
Example:
in reverse gear
Classified under:
Adjectives
Antonym:
forward (of the transmission gear causing forward movement in a motor vehicle)
Derivation:
reverse (the gears by which the motion of a machine can be reversed)
III. (verb)
Verb forms
Present simple: I / you / we / they reverse ... he / she / it reverses
Past simple: reversed
Past participle: reversed
-ing form: reversing
Sense 1
Meaning:
Change to the contrary
Example:
public opinion turned when it was revealed that the president had an affair with a White House intern
Synonyms:
change by reversal; reverse; turn
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Hypernyms (to "reverse" is one way to...):
change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "reverse"):
undo (cancel, annul, or reverse an action or its effect)
deconsecrate; desecrate; unhallow (remove the consecration from a person or an object)
desynchronise; desynchronize (cause to become desynchronized; cause to occur at unrelated times)
regress; retrovert; return; revert; turn back (go back to a previous state)
metamorphose; transfigure; transmogrify (change completely the nature or appearance of)
commute; permute; transpose (change the order or arrangement of)
falsify (falsify knowingly)
correct; rectify; right (make right or correct)
exchange; switch; switch over (change over, change around, as to a new order or sequence)
commutate (reverse the direction of (an alternating electric current) each half cycle so as to produce a unidirectional current)
turn the tables; turn the tide (cause a complete reversal of the circumstances)
alternate; flip; flip-flop; interchange; switch; tack (reverse (a direction, attitude, or course of action))
Sentence frames:
Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something
Derivation:
reversal (a change from one state to the opposite state)
reverse (turning in the opposite direction)
reverse (a relation of direct opposition)
reversible (capable of being reversed)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Turn inside out or upside down
Synonyms:
invert; reverse; turn back
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Hypernyms (to "reverse" is one way to...):
alter; change; modify (cause to change; make different; cause a transformation)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Derivation:
reversible (capable of being reversed or used with either side out)
reverse (turning in the opposite direction)
reversal (turning in an opposite direction or position)
reversal (turning in the opposite direction)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Reverse the position, order, relation, or condition of
Example:
when forming a question, invert the subject and the verb
Synonyms:
invert; reverse
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Hypernyms (to "reverse" is one way to...):
reorder (assign a new order to)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Sense 4
Meaning:
Rule against
Example:
The Republicans were overruled when the House voted on the bill
Synonyms:
override; overrule; overthrow; overturn; reverse
Classified under:
Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting
Hypernyms (to "reverse" is one way to...):
decree; rule (decide with authority)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Derivation:
reversal (a judgment by a higher court that the judgment of a lower court was incorrect and should be set aside)
Sense 5
Meaning:
Cancel officially
Example:
vacate a death sentence
Synonyms:
annul; countermand; lift; overturn; repeal; rescind; reverse; revoke; vacate
Classified under:
Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing
Hypernyms (to "reverse" is one way to...):
cancel; strike down (declare null and void; make ineffective)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "reverse"):
go back on; renege; renege on; renegue on (fail to fulfill a promise or obligation)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Derivation:
reversal (a decision to reverse an earlier decision)
reverse (a relation of direct opposition)
reversible (capable of being reversed)
Context examples:
In addition, this agent may enhance the cytotoxicity of DNA-damaging agents and reverse tumor cell resistance to chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
(PARP Inhibitor E7016, NCI Thesaurus)
ABT-767 may enhance the cytotoxicity of DNA-damaging agents and reverse tumor cell chemo- and radioresistance.
(PARP-1/2 Inhibitor ABT-767, NCI Thesaurus)
I dare not expect such success, yet I cannot bear to look on the reverse of the picture.
(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)
Olaparib selectively binds to and inhibits PARP, inhibiting PARP-mediated repair of single strand DNA breaks; PARP inhibition may enhance the cytotoxicity of DNA-damaging agents and may reverse tumor cell chemoresistance and radioresistance.
(Olaparib, NCI Thesaurus)
A dideoxyuridine inhibitor of HIV reverse transcriptase that is related to zidovudine.
(Navuridine, NCI Thesaurus)
It is often too late to reverse the condition once people seek medical attention.
(Study finds genetic link for rare intestinal cancer, NIH)
The second group consumed the same amounts of alcohol, but in reverse order.
(Wine before beer, or beer before wine? Either way, you’ll be hungover, University of Cambridge)
Some of the problems brought on by these conditions can be managed or reversed.
(Mild Cognitive Impairment, NIH: National Institute on Aging)
Round and round he went, whirling and turning and reversing, trying to shake off the fifty-pound weight that dragged at his throat.
(White Fang, by Jack London)
When Xi-treated flies, which showed normal behavior, were given trehalose alone, they resumed fast movements suggesting that the sugar was able to reverse the effects of Xi.
(Gut bacteria may control movement, National Institutes of Health)
