as in opposite
something that is as different as possible from something else
the new administration had promised peace and prosperity, but what we got was the obverse: war and recession
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in reverse
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of obverse
David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Feb. 2025
According to one estimate, 96 percent of the world’s population speaks just four percent of all languages, which means that the striking obverse is also true: just four percent of the world’s population speaks 96 percent of all languages.
—Ross Perlin, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
Davey Winder, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2025
The obverse side will still feature the portrait of former President George Washington by Laura Gardin Fraser.
—Jordan D. Brown, Baltimore Sun, 3 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for obverse
Noun
Kraft noted that the coin's obverse was identical to the 1806 British coinage, while the reverse was unique to the Bahamas.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Feb. 2025
According to one estimate, 96 percent of the world’s population speaks just four percent of all languages, which means that the striking obverse is also true: just four percent of the world’s population speaks 96 percent of all languages.
—Ross Perlin, Foreign Affairs, 23 Apr. 2024
Adjective
The obverse side of the communications coin is that without TLS encryption, that information is there for anyone to sniff out.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2025
The obverse side will still feature the portrait of former President George Washington by Laura Gardin Fraser.
—Jordan D. Brown, Baltimore Sun, 3 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for obverse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obverse
Noun
-
Orlean, in Joyride, does the opposite.—
Lily Meyer,
The Atlantic,
29 Jan. 2026
-
That is literally the opposite of the business model of every downstream distributor that is now the economic engine of our entire collective industry.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Koepka, the first to work out a deal with the PGA as a reverse defector, this week is playing his first Tour event since returning, at the Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego.—
Mary Whitfill Roeloffs,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
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Gracie Abrams added another twist to Chanel’s cap-toe story at the house’s spring 2026 couture show in Paris on Tuesday, wearing reverse two-tone pumps from the Métiers d’Art 2026 collection in the front row.—
Maggie Clancy,
Footwear News,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
This is the inverse aspect of high capital returns.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
20 Jan. 2026
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The Ducks have nearly posted the inverse number, 13 losses in 15 opportunities.—
Andrew Knoll,
Oc Register,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obverse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obverse. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
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