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versus - 4 dictionary results

ver⋅sus

  [vur-suhs, -suhz]
Use versus in a Sentence
–preposition
1. against (used esp. to indicate an action brought by one party against another in a court of law, or to denote competing teams or players in a sports contest): Smith versus Jones; Army versus Navy.
2. as compared to or as one of two choices; in contrast with: traveling by plane versus traveling by train. Abbreviation: v., vs.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME < L: towards, i.e., turned so as to face (something), opposite, over against, orig. ptp. of vertere to turn; see verse
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ver·sus   (vûr'səs, -səz)   
prep.  
  1. Abbr. v. or vs. Against: the plaintiff versus the defendant; Army versus Navy.
  2. As the alternative to or in contrast with: "freedom of information versus invasion of privacy" (Ian Hamilton).

[Middle English, from Medieval Latin, from Latin, turned, toward, from past participle of vertere, to turn; see wer-2 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Versus

Ver"sus\, prep. [L., toward, turned in the direction of, from vertere, versum, to turn. See Verse.] Against; as, John Doe versus Richard Roe; -- chiefly used in legal language, and abbreviated to v. or vs.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : versus
Spanish: contra,
German: gegen,
Japanese: ～対
More Translations »

versus 
1447, in legal case names, denoting action of one party against another, from L. versus "turned toward or against," from pp. of vertere "to turn," from PIE *wert- "to turn, wind," from base *wer- "to turn, bend" (cf. O.E. -weard "toward," originally "turned toward," weorthan "to befall," wyrd "fate, destiny," lit. "what befalls one;" Skt. vartate "turns round, rolls;" Avestan varet- "to turn;" L. vertere (freq. versare) "to turn;" O.C.S. vruteti "to turn, roll," Rus. vreteno "spindle, distaff;" Lith. verciu "to turn;" Gk. rhatane "stirrer, ladle;" Ger. werden, O.E. weorðan "to become," for sense, cf. "to turn into;" Welsh gwerthyd "spindle, distaff;" O.Ir. frith "against").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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