overturn
Other forms: overturned; overturning; overturns
To overturn something is to either flip it upside down or to invalidate it. An amateur kayaker might overturn her boat, while a judge may decide to overturn a previous judgment.
When you overturn a wheelbarrow or a tricycle, you literally turn it over. When judges overturn earlier rulings or voters overturn laws, they make them invalid, essentially reversing them. An earlier, more intense metaphorical meaning of this word was "violently overthrow a ruler or rulers." Overturn was originally used in the 13th century to describe a turning wheel.
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cause to overturn from an upright or normal position
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turn from an upright or normal position
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change radicallysynonyms: revolutionise, revolutionize
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the act of upsetting something
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an improbable and unexpected victory
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cause the downfall of; of rulerssynonyms: bring down, overthrow, subvert, toppletypes:revolutionizeoverthrow by a revolution, of governments
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reject, reverse, or overturn a decision, ruling, or argument
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cancel officially
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Vocabulary lists containing overturn
When Amy Anne's favorite book is banned from her school library, she decides to fight against censorship.
Stories about Mount Everest's growth spurt, a TikTok Ratatouille musical, and the successful return of a Japanese space probe all contributed words to this list of vocabulary from the week's top news.
Twelve-year-old Zoe Washington attempts to prove that her father was wrongfully convicted of a crime.