verb (used with object)
- to destroy the power of; overthrow; defeat; vanquish.
- to turn over on its side, face, or back; upset: to overturn a vase.
verb (used without object)
- to turn on its side, face, or back; capsize: The boat overturned during the storm.
noun
- the act of overturning.
- the state of being overturned.
verb (ˌəʊvəˈtɜːn)
- to turn or cause to turn from an upright or normal position
- (tr) to overthrow or destroy
- (tr) to invalidate; reversethe bill was passed in the Commons but overturned in the Lords
noun (ˈəʊvəˌtɜːn)
- the act of overturning or the state of being overturned
v.early 13c., of a wheel, “to rotate, roll over,” from over- + turn (v.). Attested from c.1300 in general transitive sense “to throw over violently;” figurative meaning “to ruin, destroy” is from late 14c. Of judicial decisions, “to reverse,” it is attested from 1826. Related: Overturned; overturning.