Etymograph

English

adverse

Adverse comes from Latin adversus ‘turned against’, from vertō ‘to turn’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wert-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-1‘to turn, to rotate, spin’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wertō1‘to turn’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvertō2as vertere‘to turn’next step skipped: Latin advertō
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEadversus2‘turned against’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400avers2
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1809adverse2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin verto
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English adverse
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1809, Lord Byron: “Calpe's adverse height / […] must greet my sight”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*wert-Wiktionary, Latin verto‘to turn, to rotate, spin’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*wertōWiktionary, Latin verto‘to turn’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvertōWiktionary, English adverseas vertere‘to turn’next step skipped: Latin advertō
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEadversusWiktionary, English adverse‘turned against’
  5. Old Frenchc. 842–1400aversWiktionary, English adverse
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1809adverseWiktionary, English adverse. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1809, Lord Byron: “Calpe's adverse height / […] must greet my sight”

first attested 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”) (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)

The story

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’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *wert- ‘to turn, to rotate, spin’

word, worth, weird, ridiculous, universe, ridicule, derision, invert, deride, derisive, wurst, extraversion, 59 more

through Proto-Italic *wertō ‘to turn’

diversion, inversion, aversion, transverse, vertebra, perversion, reversion, evert, 42 more

through Latin vertō ‘to turn’

university, version, divorce, conversation, diversity, vertical, versus, vortex, diverse, convertible, versatile, divert, revert, pervert, diversification, vertex, vertigo, avert, vertebrate, inverse, introvert, subvert, vert, perverse, averse, verso, perversity, 49 more

Today it means

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.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “adverse”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin verto. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *wert- / adverse

Shirt and support for this word