Reverse | Webster's Dictionary (1865)

Re-vērse', v. t.

verbtransitive

(14), v. t. [imp. & p. p. REVERSED (re-vĕrst'); p. pr. & vb. n. REVERSING.] [Lat. rever-tere, reversum, from re, again, back, and vertere, to turn; Pr. & O. Sp. reversar; N. Sp. revesar, revezar; It. riversare, O. Fr. reverser, N. Fr. renverser. Cf. REVERT.]

Sense 1. To turn back; to cause to face in a contrary direction; to cause to return or depart.

And that old dame said many an idle verse.

Out of her daughter's heart fond fancies to reverse. Spenser.

Sense 2. Hence, to recall; to renew. [Obs.]

Well knowing true all he did rehearse, And to his fresh remembrance did reverse The ugly view of his deformed crimes. Spenser.

Sense 3. Hence, also, to change totally; to alter to the opposite.

Reverse the doom of death. Shak.

She reversed the conduct of the celebrated vicar of Bray. W. Scott.

Sense 4. To turn end for end, or upside down.

A pyramid reversed may stand upon his point, if balanced by admirable skill. Sir W. Temple.

Sense 5. Hence, to overthrow; to subvert.

These can divide, and these reverse the state. Pope.

Sense 6. To put in each other's place; to confound.

Custom . . . reverses even the distinctions of good and evil. Rogers.

Sense 7. (Law.) To overthrow by a contrary decision; to make void; to undo or annul for error; as, to reverse a judgment, sentence, or decree.

To reverse an engine (Engin.), to cause it to perform its revolutions or action in the opposite direction; to change the motion of the crank from direct to the reverse.

Synonyms— To overturn; overset; invert; overthrow; subvert; repeal; annul; revoke.

Re-vĕrse', v. i.

verbintransitive

To return. [Obs.] Spenser.

Re-vĕrse', n.

noun

n. [Fr. revers, Sp. revés, It. riverscio, riverscio, rovescio. See supra and infra.]

Sense 1. That which appears or is presented when any thing, as a lance, a line, a course of conduct, or the like, is reverted or turned back; the opposite. “And then mistook reverse of wrong for right.” Pope.

He did so with the reverse of the lance. W. Scott.

Sense 2. That which is directly opposite or contrary to something else; a contrary; an opposite.

To make every thing the reverse of what they have seen, is quite as easy as to destroy. Burke.

Sense 3. Complete change; total opposition in circumstances or character; especially, a change from better to worse; misfortune; rarely, a change for the better; good fortune.

Meantime, by a reverse of fortune, Stephen becomes rich. C. Lamb.

Sense 4. The back side; as, the reverse of a drum or trench; the reverse of a medal or coin, that is, the side opposite to that on which the head or principal figure is impressed. Brande.

Re-vĕrse',, a.

adjective

a. [Lat. reversus, p. p. of revertere. See REVERSE and REVERT.] Turned backward; having a contrary or opposite direction; as, the reverse order or method.

Reverse bearing (Surv.), the bearing of a back station as observed from the station next in advance. — Reverse curve (Railways), a curve like the letter S, formed of two curves lying in opposite directions. — Reverse fire (Mil.), a fire in the rear. — Reverse lever (Steam-eng.), a hand lever for changing the motion of the valve-gear to reverse the engine, or to modify the degree of expansion. — Reverse operation (Math.), an operation the steps of which are taken in a contrary order to that in which the same or similar steps are taken in another operation considered as direct; an operation in which that is sought which in another operation is given, and that given which in the other is sought; as, finding the length of a pendulum from its time of vibration is the reverse operation to finding the time of vibration from the length.