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reverse

reverse

3 5.1
The back side of a coin or medal that does not show the main design
  • noun
  • /rɪˈvɜrs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : reverso
  • And you have Athena on the obverse and on the reverse you have a victory.

Examples

  • This is the reverse side of all this markering.

  • On the famous reverse, pictured here, we see two daggers and Eidmar, the Ides of March.

  • I was so surprised by its ending that I looked for more on the reverse of the page.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • The text on the reverse concludes:

    Academic text (2007)
  • Below, a silver coin showing the head of Apollo and a flying dove on the reverse, found at the Helike Classical site.

    Academic text (2004)
  • The obverse shows St. Michael slaying the devil; the reverse shows the ship of state representing the body politic.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The enigmatic scene on the reverse can be understood as a clever imitation of these representations adapted to Filarete's own position and accomplishment.

    Academic text (2012)
  • On the reverse of the coin, there is an intricate design of a soaring eagle.

  • The reverse features an image of the country's national flower, beautifully engraved.

  • If you look closely, the reverse of the medal has the year it was minted inscribed.

Synonyms

flip side
vsreverse
41 4.1

The other side of something that shows a different, often negative, effect

is used for a physical coin side not a metaphorical opposite
backside
vsreverse
26 1.6

The rear side of something like a building or card

is specific to coins or medals rather than any opposite surface
verso
vsreverse
  • Specialized
9.9

The side of a coin or medal opposite the front design

is the common term for that same coin side

Antonyms

2 7.8

The front side of something, or its opposite in a pair, for example a coin's portrait side

Compounds

reverse gear
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A gear in a vehicle that makes it move backwards

reverse osmosis
  • Specialized
1 4.5

A process that makes water clean by forcing it through a thin layer to stop salt and dirt

double reverse
  • Specialized
1 8.2

A running play in American football where the ball is handed twice, each time changing direction

reverse transcriptase
  • Specialized
1 6.3

An enzyme that makes DNA from RNA, often used by viruses like HIV

A drug that stops HIV changing its genetic material and is used with other medicines

An HIV drug that joins viral DNA and stops the enzyme that copies the virus

reverse fault
  • Specialized
8.3

A break in rock where one side moves up when the land is pushed together

A body position with arms stretched backward while the body is held by a bar above

reverse lightning
  • Specialized
9.9

A rare electric flash that travels upward from storm clouds

9.8

A tendency to make everything a person touches fail

9.5

A way to write math with numbers before the sign so no parentheses

reverse split
  • Specialized
8.2

Reduce the number of a company's shares so each share is worth more without changing total investment value

reverse stock split
  • Specialized
7.9

A company action that combines its shares so each is worth more but the total value stays the same

A drug that stops an enzyme viruses like HIV use to copy their genes

reverse trap
  • Informal
9.1

A trick that backfires and harms the person who set it

9.9

A position on rings where a gymnast hangs upside down with hips bent and legs straight

Surface Forms

reverse singular
reverses plural

Morphology

reverse = verse (semi-transparent) = re + verse

The sense 'back side' is derived from the idea of turning/being on the other side, but learners may not connect this to the obscure root meaning.

Etymology

Reverse comes from the Latin parts re- ('back') and vertere ('to turn'), so it literally means 'turn back' or the 'back' side. That is why the reverse of a coin is the side opposite the main design.