reverse
41
3.7
- noun
- /rɪˈvɜrs/
- Specialized
- Max, downshift slowly and put it in reverse.
- go into reverse
Examples
-
So in the car, you have a forward gear called drive and a reverse gear called reverse.
-
Listen, put it in reverse.
-
Ever heard of driving in reverse?
-
I had just put the car into reverse when Johnny grabbed my arm.
Fiction book (1997) -
Put it in reverse.
-
It's stuck in reverse!
-
It's in reverse!
-
Terminator slams the car into reverse and punches it, lighting up the tires on the slick ramp.
Fiction book (1991) -
Reacting to the shot, Perdita jams the gear shift into reverse and peels out, knocking the deputy down.
Fiction book (1990) -
To move backward, shift the gear into reverse.
Synonyms
1
3.7
A gear in a vehicle that makes it move backwards
Compounds
- Specialized
2
4.5
A process that makes water clean by forcing it through a thin layer to stop salt and dirt
- Specialized
2
8.2
A running play in American football where the ball is handed twice, each time changing direction
- Specialized
1
6.3
An enzyme that makes DNA from RNA, often used by viruses like HIV
- Specialized
1
8.2
Reduce the number of a company's shares so each share is worth more without changing total investment value
- Specialized
1
6.6
An HIV drug that joins viral DNA and stops the enzyme that copies the virus
- Specialized
1
5.7
A drug that stops an enzyme viruses like HIV use to copy their genes
- Specialized
1
7.9
A company action that combines its shares so each is worth more but the total value stays the same
- Specialized
1
9.5
A drug that stops HIV changing its genetic material and is used with other medicines
- Specialized
1
8.3
A break in rock where one side moves up when the land is pushed together
- Specialized
A way to write math with numbers before the sign so no parentheses
- Jargon
A position on rings where a gymnast hangs upside down with hips bent and legs straight
Surface Forms
Morphology
reverse = verse (semi-transparent) = re + verse
The gear 'reverse' meaning 'move backward' follows the literal sense 'turn back', but the specific morpheme '-verse' is not transparent to learners.
Etymology
Reverse comes from the Latin parts re- ('back') and vertere ('to turn'), so it means 'turning back'. That is why the reverse gear makes a machine or vehicle move backward.