overturn
verb
over·turn
| \ ˌō-vər-ˈtərn
\
\
overturned;
overturning;
overturns
Definition of overturn
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: to cause to turn over : upset
overturned the vase
2a
: invalidate, destroy
the degree to which accident could overturn the schemes of wise men— Oscar Handlin
b
: reverse sense 2a
overturn a court ruling
overturn
noun
over·turn
| \ ˈō-vər-ˌtərn
\
\
Definition of overturn (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: the act of overturning : the state of being overturned
2
: the sinking of surface water and rise of bottom water in a lake or sea that results from changes in temperature that commonly occur in spring and fall
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Examples of overturn in a Sentence
Verb
The dog overturned the bowl. The truck went off the road and overturned several times. The court overturned his conviction.
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Fix the City’s lawsuit seeks to overturn the city’s recent approval of a seven-story, 120-unit residential building on Santa Monica Boulevard just west of Century City that relied on the city’s looser planning rules. — David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, "It’s seen as one of L.A.'s most successful housing programs. A lawsuit seeks to strike it down," 4 Sep. 2019 Woods' initial conviction in 1980 was overturned by Nevada's Supreme Court. — NBC News, "Nevada woman cleared of murder after 35 years in prison gets $3 million," 29 Aug. 2019 The conviction was later overturned on appeal based on the argument that Celestin had had ineffective representation. — Ariston Anderson, The Hollywood Reporter, "Nate Parker's 'American Skin' Producer: He "Deserves a Second Chance"," 22 Aug. 2019 The federal lawsuit seeks to overturn the EPA’s decision in April not to compel General Electric Co. to restart dredging for polychlorinated biphenyls from the upper river. — Washington Post, "State officials sue EPA, seeking more Hudson River cleanup," 21 Aug. 2019 Since being sentenced, Cornell has acted as his own attorney, filing appeals seeking to overturn his guilty plea and sentence. — Kevin Grasha, Cincinnati.com, "Green Township man imprisoned for terror plot legally assumes new name," 8 July 2019 The Oregon Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in November on a Multnomah County case that seeks to overturn the 1997 ruling that found campaign donations are protected free speech. — oregonlive.com, "Oregon lawmakers wavering on campaign finance reform," 19 June 2019 The resolution seeks to overturn a Treasury rule that allows politically active nonprofits to withhold donor-identifying information from the IRS. — Michelle Ye Hee Lee, The Seattle Times, "Senate votes to overturn Trump administration donor disclosure rule for ‘dark money’ groups," 12 Dec. 2018 The federal lawsuit seeks to overturn the EPA’s decision in April not to compel GE to restart dredging for polychlorinated biphenyls from the upper river. — BostonGlobe.com, "GE cleanup of Hudson River target of lawsuit," 22 Aug. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Lillard and CJ McCollum are among the most durable guards in the NBA, and their core remains comparably skilled compared to last year’s despite some significant overturn. — Michael Shapiro, SI.com, "Finding the Top Win Total Locks of the 2019-20 Season," 9 Aug. 2019 Only in these days of political correctness could such an overturn occur. — Eugene Robinson, The Mercury News, "Robinson: Only an ignoramus would sound like Trump," 9 June 2019 Following the tragic overturn, Donald Trump offered his condolences to West Point in a tweet on Thursday morning. — Eric Todisco, PEOPLE.com, "West Point Cadet Killed in Tragic Accident Identified as 22-Year-Old From New Jersey," 7 June 2019 How many more is hard to say for certain, but if the 9 percent pre-Roe figure referenced by Khazan begins to take shape after a possible future overturn of Roe, there would be (very roughly) 90,000 more babies in need of adoption per year. — Dan Hart, National Review, "In a Post-Abortion America, the Pro-Life Movement Must Prepare to Change Attitudes toward Adoption," 7 June 2019 The first is the overturn-without-overturning approach. — Dylan Matthews, Vox, "Brett Kavanaugh likely gives the Supreme Court the votes to overturn Roe. Here’s how they’d do it.," 5 Oct. 2018 The first is the overturn-without-overturning approach. — Dylan Matthews, Vox, "Brett Kavanaugh likely gives the Supreme Court the votes to overturn Roe. Here’s how they’d do it.," 5 Oct. 2018 The first is the overturn-without-overturning approach. — Dylan Matthews, Vox, "Brett Kavanaugh likely gives the Supreme Court the votes to overturn Roe. Here’s how they’d do it.," 5 Oct. 2018 The first is the overturn-without-overturning approach. — Dylan Matthews, Vox, "Brett Kavanaugh likely gives the Supreme Court the votes to overturn Roe. Here’s how they’d do it.," 5 Oct. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'overturn.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for overturn
overturn
verb
English Language Learners Definition of overturn
: to turn (something) over
: to turn over
: to decide that (a ruling, decision, etc.) is wrong and change it
See the full definition for overturn in the English Language Learners Dictionary
overturn
verb
over·turn
| \ ˌō-vər-ˈtərn
\
\
overturned;
overturning
Kids Definition of overturn
1
: to turn over or upside down
Waves overturned the boat.
2
: to reverse or cancel something previously decided or ordered
The judge overturned the lower court's ruling.
overturn
transitive verb
over·turn
Legal Definition of overturn
: overrule