[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/invert/)

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# invert

verb (invert, inverts, inverted, inverting); noun (an invert — rare)

«invert» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. To invert something is to turn it upside down. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#m1)
2. To invert something is to swap it round so it goes the opposite way, back to front or in reverse order. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#m2)
3. (maths) To invert a fraction is to turn it upside down, so 2/3 becomes 3/2. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#m3)

### In the lessons

In maths, dividing by a fraction means «invert and multiply». In science, a lens can invert an image. In English grammar, questions invert the subject and verb («Is he…?»). «Inverted commas» are quotation marks (UK). It tells the reader that the order or direction has been flipped.

### Examples

- Invert the glass and the water will spill out. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x1)
- To divide by 1/2, invert it and multiply by 2. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x2)
- A pinhole camera inverts the picture. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x3)
- In a question we invert «he is» to «is he». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x4)
- Put the words in inverted commas. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x5)
- The cake was inverted onto a plate. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x6)
- Bats hang inverted from the cave roof. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/#x7)

### Note

Regular: inverted, inverting. Noun: inversion. «Inverted commas» (UK) = speech marks. Maths trap: inverting 4 (= 4/1) gives 1/4.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «invert» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/invert/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«invert» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/invert.html) on Mova free.