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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

REVERSE, v.t. revers'. [L. reversus, reverto; re and verto, to turn.]
1. To turn upside down; as, to reverse a pyramid or cone.
2. To overturn; to subvert; as, to reverse the state.
3. To turn back; as with swift wheel reverse.
4. To turn to the contrary; as, to reverse the scene.
- Or affectations quite reverse the soul.
5. To put each in the place of the other; as, to reverse the distinctions of good and evil.
6. In law, to overthrow by a contrary decision; to make void; to annul; as, to reverse a judgment, sentence or decree. Judgments are reversed by writs of error; and for certain causes, may be reversed without such writs.
7. To recall. [Not in use.]
REVERSE, v.i. revers'. To return. [Not in use.]
REVERSE, n. revers'.
1. Change; vicissitude; a turn of affairs; in a good sense.
By a strange reverse of things, Justinian's law, which for many ages was neglected, now obtains -
2. Change for the worse; misfortune. By an unexpected reverse of circumstances, an affluent man is reduced to poverty.
3. A contrary; an opposite.
The performances to which God has annexed the promises of eternity, are just the reverse of all the pursuits of sense.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: directed or moving toward the rear; "a rearward glance"; "a rearward movement" [syn: rearward, reverse]
2: of the transmission gear causing backward movement in a motor vehicle; "in reverse gear" [ant: forward]
3: reversed (turned backward) in order or nature or effect [syn: inverse, reverse] n
1: a relation of direct opposition; "we thought Sue was older than Bill but just the reverse was true" [syn: reverse, contrary, opposite]
2: the gears by which the motion of a machine can be reversed [syn: reverse, reverse gear]
3: an unfortunate happening that hinders or impedes; something that is thwarting or frustrating [syn: reverse, reversal, setback, blow, black eye]
4: the side of a coin or medal that does not bear the principal design [syn: reverse, verso] [ant: obverse]
5: (American football) a running play in which a back running in one direction hands the ball to a back running in the opposite direction
6: turning in the opposite direction [syn: reversion, reverse, reversal, turnabout, turnaround] v
1: change to the contrary; "The trend was reversed"; "the tides turned against him"; "public opinion turned when it was revealed that the president had an affair with a White House intern" [syn: change by reversal, turn, reverse]
2: turn inside out or upside down [syn: turn back, invert, reverse]
3: rule against; "The Republicans were overruled when the House voted on the bill" [syn: overrule, overturn, override, overthrow, reverse]
4: cancel officially; "He revoked the ban on smoking"; "lift an embargo"; "vacate a death sentence" [syn: revoke, annul, lift, countermand, reverse, repeal, overturn, rescind, vacate]
5: reverse the position, order, relation, or condition of; "when forming a question, invert the subject and the verb" [syn: invert, reverse]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English revers, from Anglo-French, from Latin reversus, past participle of revertere to turn back — more at revert Date: 14th century 1. a. opposite or contrary to a previous or normal condition <reverse order> b. (1) having the back presented to the observer or opponent (2) made with one's back to the basketball net <a reverse layup> 2. coming from the rear of a military force 3. acting, operating, or arranged in a manner contrary to the usual 4. effecting reverse movement <reverse gear> 5. so made that the part which normally prints in color appears white against a colored background • reversely adverb II. verb (reversed; reversing) Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to turn completely about in position or direction b. to turn upside down ; invert c. to cause to take an opposite point of view <reversed herself on the issue> 2. negate, undo: as a. to overthrow, set aside, or make void (a legal decision) by a contrary decision b. to change to the contrary <reverse a policy> c. to undo or negate the effect of (as a condition or surgical operation) <had his vasectomy reversed> 3. to cause to go in the opposite direction; especially to cause (as an engine) to perform its action in the opposite direction intransitive verb 1. to turn or move in the opposite direction <the count's waltzing…consisted…of reversing at top speed — Agatha Christie> 2. to put a mechanism (as an engine) in reverse • reverser noun Synonyms: reverse, transpose, invert mean to change to the opposite position. reverse is the most general term and may imply change in order, side, direction, meaning <reversed his position on the trade agreement>. transpose implies a change in order or relative position of units often through exchange of position <transposed the letters to form an anagram>. invert applies chiefly to turning upside down or inside out <a stamp with an inverted picture of an airplane>. III. noun Date: 14th century 1. something directly contrary to something else ; opposite 2. an act or instance of reversing; especially defeat, setback <suffered financial reverses> 3. the back part of something; especially the side of a coin or currency note that is opposite the obverse 4. a. (1) a gear that reverses something; also the whole mechanism brought into play when such a gear is used (2) movement in reverse b. an offensive play in football in which a back moving in one direction gives the ball to a player moving in the opposite direction

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v., adj., & n. --v. 1 tr. turn the other way round or up or inside out. 2 tr. change to the opposite character or effect (reversed the decision). 3 intr. & tr. travel or cause to travel backwards. 4 tr. make (an engine etc.) work in a contrary direction. 5 tr. revoke or annul (a decree, act, etc.). 6 intr. (of a dancer, esp. in a waltz) revolve in the opposite direction. --adj. 1 placed or turned in an opposite direction or position. 2 opposite or contrary in character or order; inverted. --n. 1 the opposite or contrary (the reverse is the case; is the reverse of the truth). 2 the contrary of the usual manner. 3 an occurrence of misfortune; a disaster, esp. a defeat in battle (suffered a reverse). 4 reverse gear or motion. 5 the reverse side of something. 6 a the side of a coin or medal etc. bearing the secondary design. b this design (cf. OBVERSE). 7 the verso of a leaf. Phrases and idioms: reverse arms hold a rifle with the butt upwards. reverse the charges Brit. make the recipient of a telephone call responsible for payment. reverse gear a gear used to make a vehicle etc. travel backwards. reversing light a white light at the rear of a vehicle operated when the vehicle is in reverse gear. reverse Polish notation see Polish notation. reverse strata Geol. a fault in which the overlying side of a mass of rock is displaced upward in relation to the underlying side. Derivatives: reversal n. reversely adv. reverser n. reversible adj. reversibility n. reversibly adv. Etymology: ME f. OF revers (n.), reverser (v.), f. L revertere revers- (as RE-, vertere turn)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Indentation In`den*ta"tion, n. 1. The act of indenting or state of being indented. 2. A notch or recess, in the margin or border of anything; as, the indentations of a leaf, of the coast, etc. 3. A recess or sharp depression in any surface. 4. (Print.) (a) The act of beginning a line or series of lines at a little distance within the flush line of the column or page, as in the common way of beginning the first line of a paragraph. (b) The measure of the distance; as, an indentation of one em, or of two ems. Hanging, or Reverse, indentation, indentation of all the lines of a paragraph except the first, which is a full line.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reverse Re*verse", n. [Cf. F. revers. See Reverse, a.] 1. That which appears or is presented when anything, as a lance, a line, a course of conduct, etc., is reverted or turned contrary to its natural direction. He did so with the reverse of the lance. --Sir W. Scott. 2. That which is directly opposite or contrary to something else; a contrary; an opposite. --Chaucer. And then mistook reverse of wrong for right. --Pope. To make everything the reverse of what they have seen, is quite as easy as to destroy. --Burke. 3. The act of reversing; complete change; reversal; hence, total change in circumstances or character; especially, a change from better to worse; misfortune; a check or defeat; as, the enemy met with a reverse. The strange reverse of fate you see; I pitied you, now you may pity me. --Dryden. By a reverse of fortune, Stephen becomes rich. --Lamb. 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 the obverse. See Obverse. 5. A thrust in fencing made with a backward turn of the hand; a backhanded stroke. [Obs.] --Shak. 6. (Surg.) A turn or fold made in bandaging, by which the direction of the bandage is changed.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reverse Re*verse", a. [OE. revers, OF. revers, L. reversus, p. p. of revertere. See Revert.] 1. Turned backward; having a contrary or opposite direction; hence; opposite or contrary in kind; as, the reverse order or method. ``A vice reverse unto this.'' --Gower. 2. Turned upside down; greatly disturbed. [Obs.] He found the sea diverse With many a windy storm reverse. --Gower. 3. (Bot. & Zo["o]l.) Reversed; as, a reverse shell. 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 bending in opposite directions. Reverse fire (Mil.), a fire in the rear. 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.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reverse Re*verse", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Reversed;p. pr. & vb. n. Reversing.] [See Reverse, a., and cf. Revert.] 1. To turn back; to cause to face in a contrary direction; to cause to depart. And that old dame said many an idle verse, Out of her daughter's heart fond fancies to reverse. --Spenser. 2. To cause to return; to recall. [Obs.] And to his fresh remembrance did reverse The ugly view of his deformed crimes. --Spenser. 3. To change totally; to alter to the opposite. Reverse the doom of death. --Shak. She reversed the conduct of the celebrated vicar of Bray. --Sir W. Scott. 4. To turn upside down; to invert. A pyramid reversed may stand upon his point if balanced by admirable skill. --Sir W. Temple. 5. Hence, to overthrow; to subvert. These can divide, and these reverse, the state. --Pope. Custom . . . reverses even the distinctions of good and evil. --Rogers. 6. (Law) To overthrow by a contrary decision; to make void; to under or annual for error; as, to reverse a judgment, sentence, or decree. Reverse arms (Mil.), a position of a soldier in which the piece passes between the right elbow and the body at an angle of 45[deg], and is held as in the illustration. To reverse an engine or a machine, to cause it to perform its revolutions or action in the opposite direction. Syn: To overturn; overset; invert; overthrow; subvert; repeal; annul; revoke; undo.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reverse Re*verse", v. i. 1. To return; to revert. [Obs.] --Spenser. 2. To become or be reversed.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fault Fault, n. 1. (Elec.) A defective point in an electric circuit due to a crossing of the parts of the conductor, or to contact with another conductor or the earth, or to a break in the circuit. 2. (Geol. & Mining) A dislocation caused by a slipping of rock masses along a plane of facture; also, the dislocated structure resulting from such slipping. Note: The surface along which the dislocated masses have moved is called the fault plane. When this plane is vertical, the fault is a vertical fault; when its inclination is such that the present relative position of the two masses could have been produced by the sliding down, along the fault plane, of the mass on its upper side, the fault is a normal, or gravity, fault. When the fault plane is so inclined that the mass on its upper side has moved up relatively, the fault is then called a reverse (or reversed), thrust, or overthrust, fault. If no vertical displacement has resulted, the fault is then called a horizontal fault. The linear extent of the dislocation measured on the fault plane and in the direction of movement is the displacement; the vertical displacement is the throw; the horizontal displacement is the heave. The direction of the line of intersection of the fault plane with a horizontal plane is the trend of the fault. A fault is a strike fault when its trend coincides approximately with the strike of associated strata (i.e., the line of intersection of the plane of the strata with a horizontal plane); it is a dip fault when its trend is at right angles to the strike; an oblique fault when its trend is oblique to the strike. Oblique faults and dip faults are sometimes called cross faults. A series of closely associated parallel faults are sometimes called step faults and sometimes distributive faults.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(reverses, reversing, reversed) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. When someone or something reverses a decision, policy, or trend, they change it to the opposite decision, policy, or trend. They have made it clear they will not reverse the decision to increase prices... VERB: V n 2. If you reverse the order of a set of things, you arrange them in the opposite order, so that the first thing comes last. The normal word order is reversed in passive sentences. VERB: be V-ed 3. If you reverse the positions or functions of two things, you change them so that each thing has the position or function that the other one had. He reversed the position of the two stamps. VERB: V n 4. When a car reverses or when you reverse it, the car is driven backwards. (mainly BRIT; in AM, usually use back up) Another car reversed out of the drive... He reversed his car straight at the policeman. VERB: V, V n 5. If your car is in reverse, you have changed gear so that you can drive it backwards. He lurched the car in reverse along the ruts to the access road. N-UNCOUNT: usu in/into N 6. Reverse means opposite to what you expect or to what has just been described. The wrong attitude will have exactly the reverse effect. = opposite ADJ: usu ADJ n 7. If you say that one thing is the reverse of another, you are emphasizing that the first thing is the complete opposite of the second thing. There is absolutely no evidence at all that spectators want longer cricket matches. Quite the reverse... N-SING: the N 8. A reverse is a serious failure or defeat. (FORMAL) It's clear that the party of the former Prime Minister has suffered a major reverse. = setback N-COUNT 9. The reverse or the reverse side of a flat object which has two sides is the less important or the other side. Cheques should be made payable to Country Living and your address written on the reverse. = back ? front N-SING: the N 10. If something happens in reverse or goes into reverse, things happen in the opposite way to what usually happens or to what has been happening. Amis tells the story in reverse, from the moment the man dies... PHRASE: v PHR 11. If you reverse the charges when you make a telephone call, the person who you are phoning pays the cost of the call and not you. (BRIT; in AM, use call collect) PHRASE: V inflects

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Invert, turn upside down, turn end for end, turn topsy-turvy. 2. Overturn, overthrow, overset, subvert. 3. Change to the opposite. 4. Annul, repeal, revoke, rescind, countermand, overthrow, make void. II. a. Opposite, converse, turned backward. III. n. 1. Contrary, opposite, counterpart. 2. Change, vicissitude. 3. Misfortune, mischance, mishap, misadventure, trial, hardship, affliction, reverse of fortune. 4. Check, defeat.

Moby Thesaurus

Hydromatic, abandon, abolish, about-face, about-turn, abrogate, adversative, adverse, adversity, adversive, afterpart, afterpiece, afterthoughts, alter, annul, antagonistic, anti, antipathetic, antipodal, antipode, antipodean, antipodes, antipole, antithesis, antithetic, antithetical, antonym, antonymous, assimilate to, at cross-purposes, atavism, automatic transmission, back, back away, back door, back off, back seat, back side, back track, back trail, back up, backing, backing off, backing out, backing up, backpedal, backset, backslide, backsliding, backtrack, backtrail, backup, backward, backward deviation, backwater, bafflement, balancing, balk, become, behind, better thoughts, breech, bring to, cancel, capsize, catastrophe, change, change into, change of mind, change over, check, checkmate, clashing, cogwheel, comedown, compensating, conflicting, confronting, confusion, contra, contradictory, contradistinct, contrapositive, contrarious, contrary, contrasted, converse, convert, counter, counterbalance, counterbalancing, countercheck, countermand, countermarch, counterorder, counterpoint, counterpoise, counterpoised, counterpole, counterterm, countervailing, dead against, debacle, defeat, descent, differential, differential gear, difficulty, disaffirm, disannul, disappointment, disaster, discomfiture, discordant, discrepant, disenchantment, dismantle, do away with, do over, down, evert, exchange, eyeball to eyeball, eyeball-to-eyeball, facing, falling back, flip, flip side, flip-flop, foil, freewheel, frustration, gear, gear train, gearbox, gearing, gearshift, gearwheel, go astern, go into reverse, heads, heel, high, hind end, hind part, hindhead, hostile, inconsistent, inimical, interchange, intermediate, introvert, intussuscept, invaginate, invalidate, inverse, invert, inverted, lapse, lapse back, lift, low, make, make over, make sternway, make void, mature judgment, mirror, misadventure, misfortune, mishap, modify, naturalize, negate, neutral, nullify, obverse, occiput, offset, opposed, opposing, opposite, opposite number, opposite side, oppositional, oppositive, oppugnant, other face, other side, overdrive, override, overrule, overthrow, overturn, perverse, polar, polaric, polarized, posterior, postern, problem, pronate, quash, rack, rear, rear end, rearward, rebuff, recall, recant, recidivate, recidivation, recidivism, reclamation, reconversion, reconvert, recrudescence, recurrence, reduce to, regress, regression, rehabilitation, reinstatement, relapse, render, renege, renewal, renounce, repeal, repugnant, repulse, rescind, resolve into, restitution, restoration, resupinate, retract, retrocede, retrocession, retrogradation, retrograde, retrogress, retrogression, retroversion, retrovert, return, returning, reversal, reverse of fortune, reversed, reversing, reversion, revert, reverting, revoke, revolve, revulsion, right-about, right-about-face, rotate, rout, second thoughts, set aside, setback, setoff, severe check, shift, slip back, slipping back, squared off, standard transmission, stern, stick shift, supinate, suspend, swingaround, switch, switch over, synchromesh, tail, tail end, tailpiece, tails, take back, tergiversating, tergiversation, the contrary, the other side, throwback, transfer, transform, transmission, transplace, transpose, trouble, turn, turn about, turn around, turn back, turn down, turn in, turn inside out, turn into, turn out, turn over, turn the scale, turn the tables, turn topsy-turvy, turn upside down, turnabout, turnaround, underside, undo, upset, upside down, vacate, verso, veto, vicissitude, vis-a-vis, void, volte-face, waive, washout, withdraw, write off, wrong side