Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Acting or serving to oppose; antagonistic: adverse criticism.
- adj. Contrary to one's interests or welfare; harmful or unfavorable: adverse circumstances.
- adj. Moving in an opposite or opposing direction: adverse currents.
- adj. Archaic Placed opposite.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Being or acting in a contrary direction; opposed or opposing in position or course; opposite; confronting: most commonly used of hurtful or hostile opposedness, but sometimes of mere opposition in space.
- Antagonistic in purpose or effect; opposite; hostile; inimical: as, an adverse party; adverse criticism.
- Opposing desire; contrary to the wishes or to supposed good; hence, unfortunate; calamitous; unprosperous: as, adverse fate or circumstances.
- In botany, turned toward the axis: the opposite of averse, but rarely used. See anatropous.
- Averse, Inimical, etc. See hostile.
- Unfortunate, unlucky, calamitous, untoward, disastrous.
- To oppose.
Wiktionary
- adj. Unfavorable; antagonistic in purpose or effect; hostile; actively opposing one's interests or wishes; contrary to one's welfare; acting against; working in an opposing direction.
- adj. Opposed; contrary; opposing one's interests or desire.
- adj. not comparable Opposite; confronting.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Acting against, or in a contrary direction; opposed; contrary; opposite; conflicting.
- adj. Opposite.
- adj. In hostile opposition to; unfavorable; unpropitious; contrary to one's wishes; unfortunate; calamitous; afflictive; hurtful.
- v. obsolete To oppose; to resist.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. contrary to your interests or welfare
- adj. in an opposing direction
Etymologies
- First attested around 1374, from Old French avers (French: adverse), from Latin adversus ("turned against"), past participle of advertere, from ad- ("to") + vertere ("to turn"). See also versus. (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, from Old French advers, from Latin adversus, past participle of advertere, to turn toward : ad-, ad- + vertere, to turn; see wer-2 in Indo-European roots. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Major Nidal Hasan lectured senior Army physicians about what he called adverse effects if Muslim soldiers are sent to fight other Muslims.”
“Both Fannie and Freddie also tack on what they call adverse-market fees of one-quarter of 1 percent to all loans - the equivalent of cover charges at a night club - just to get you seated at the table.”
“Both Fannie and Freddie also tack on what they call adverse-market fees of one-quarter of 1% to all loans just to get you seated at the table.”
“A tenant, though threatened with suits at law on a title adverse to liis landlord's, cannot make them interplead.”
“Both of these guns have a 3 in. chamber and are touted as being highly reliable in adverse conditions.”
I'm going to get a new autoloader for geese and want to know which one ya'll would suggest?
“Although these drugs do not have many acute side effects, there may be more long-term adverse effects.”
USA Today: Study: Americans' use of antidepressants on the rise
“The author at Asymmetrical Information in a related article titled How adverse is adverse selection? writes:”
Austan Goolsbee on Health Care, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty
“Orlistat use frequently results in adverse events including flatus, oily stools, fecal urgency or fecal incontinence, and abdominal pain, particularly among patients who do not follow the recommended low-fat diet.”
“For those of you who do, I admire you for your ability to compromise and survive in adverse conditions. mrknowitall”
“The whistleblower incentive program would take away from a company's efforts to foster an open and ethical culture and could have a long-term adverse impact on the level of corporate compliance," Target Corp. General Counsel Timothy R. Baer wrote in a letter.”
The Wall Street Journal: Companies Prod SEC on Whistleblower Proposal
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘adverse’.
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1100
abound, technology, branch of knowled..., prognosticate, automaton, matron, an older married ..., realm, special field of ..., kingdom, annals, historical records and 981 more...
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GRE 2014
abate, abdicate, abase, aberrant, abeyance, abhor, abjure, abortive, abound, abrasive, abreast, abridge and 1577 more...
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
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EU Buzz - ALL words and expressions
A combined list of
1. EU Buzz - single words
2. EU Buzz - collocations
3. EU Buzz - the 100 most active
collocation constituentsabsorption capacity, absorption rate, acceding country, accession candidate, accession countries, accession country, accession criteria, accession cycle, accession negotia..., accession partner..., accession priorities, accession treaty and 2650 more...
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EN - confusables
Similar words meaning different things
torturous, wreathe, tortuous, wreath, titivate, titillate, stationary, storey, septic, principal, principle, story and 134 more...
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EU Buzz - Lisbon Treaty
All words of the Lisbon Treaty
(Persons' names, foreign and grammatical words have been eliminated, MWEs have been split up into individual words. Capitalization has been retained if r...conferral, stateless, person, voting, right, subsidiarity, Latvia, Malta, Slovenia, Lithuania, Finland, Estonia and 2614 more...
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Verses
inverse, reverse, universe, obverse, adverse, averse, converse, bouleversement, diverse, overseas, oversee, oversew and 20 more...
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Tourism Department. Unit 4
takeover, merger, reach, profit, challenge, holidaymakers, saturation, profitability, significant, sign, signature, success and 36 more...
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GRE 1100
drudgery, implore, hapless, nuance, wrest, incipient, inadvertent, tremulous, bristle, euphemism, disdain, pugnacious and 346 more...
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Harmful
quick, hurtful, ruinous, noxious, destructive, deadly, mischievous, deleterious, baneful, injurious, baleful, malicious and 24 more...
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big book gre
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 6691 more...
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5000 FREE SAT Words
abase, abbess, abbey, abbot, abdicate, abdomen, abdominal, abduction, abed, aberration, abet, abeyance and 229 more...
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1100 words you need to know
GRE words
voracious, indiscriminate, eminent, steeped, replete, abound, technology, prognosticate, automaton, matron, paradox, realm and 288 more...
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Words I Know
List of most of the words I've learned
garner, abase, abate, abdicate, abduct, aberration, abet, abhor, abide, abject, abjure, abnegation and 1046 more...
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slumry's Words
cattywampus, ingratiate, lackadaisical, exactitude, exfoliate, fulminate, circumnavigation, circuitous, debride, sidle, sequester, chicory and 1002 more...
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GRE
abate, abdicate, aberrant, abhor, abjure, abrasive, abridge, abstain, acme, activism, adhere, admonish and 195 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for adverse.
VoraciousVerbivore If you add up all the verses in the Bible, will it take away the adverse circumstances in your life? Aug 1, 2011
jeen0809 A troll is an adverse creature Mar 22, 2007