Words / B2

ohv-uh-TURN/ˌəʊvəˈtɜːn/

To overturn is to turn something upside down, or to reverse a decision: overturn a conviction; the boat overturned. Reverse is the legal twin; overthrow is to remove a government by force (already elsewhere). The appeal overturned the exclusion. Mix-up: overthrow / overtake / turn over (pages). Do not write overturn for a coup without a court or official reversal.

Meaning

To turn something upside down, or to reverse an official decision.

Examples

• “The appeal overturned the exclusion, the letter said.”
• “The dinghy overturned in the squall, which is the physical sense.”

Good to know

overturn a decision / verdict / ban; overturn a boat. Legal twin: reverse. Trap: overthrow. Law, news, and geography. Reverse officially, or capsize — specify.

Near in meaning

reverse

New