I.to turn upside down, turn about, to upset, invert (class.).
I. Lit.: “pingue solum Fortes invertant tauri,” to turn up, plough up, Verg. G. 1, 64: “campum,” id. ib. 3, 161: “Boreas invertit ornos,” upturns, overthrows, Luc. 6, 390: “vinaria,” to upset, empty, Hor. S. 2, 8, 39: “mare,” i. e. disturbed, rough, id. Epod. 10, 5: “alveos navium inversos pro tuguriis habere,” Sall. J. 18, 5: “adeo vehementer talum inverti, ut minimum affuerim quin articulum defregerim,” dislocated, App. Flor. 3, p. 134, 3: “si polypus invertatur,” Plin. 9, 30, 48, § 91: “invertere se,” to turn over, id. 32, 2, 5, § 13: “cum in locum anulum inverterat,” Cic. Off. 3, 9, 38. —
II. Trop., to invert, transp?*!se; to change. alter; to pervert; to exchange: “ut cum semel dictum sit directe, invertatur ordo, et idem quasi sursum versus retroque dicatur,” Cic. Part. 7, 24: quae in vulgus edita ejus verbis, invertere supersedeo, to alter, give in another form, Tac. A. 15, 63: “virtutes,” to alter, misrepresent, Hor. S. 1, 3, 55: “lanas,” to dye, color, Sil. 16, 569: “Vertumnus Deus invertendarum rerum est,” i. e. of barter, trade, Ascon. ad Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 59, § 154. —
B. Esp. of words, to pervert, misapply, use ironically (cf. inversio, I.): “invertuntur verba, ut, etc.,” Cic. de Or. 2, 65, 262.—Hence, inversus , a, um, P. a., turned upside down, inverted.
A. Lit.: “vomer inversus,” Hor. Epod. 2, 63: “carinae,” Plin. 9, 6, 5, § 15: “manus (opp. supina),” id. 12, 25, 54, § 121: “charta,” Mart. 4, 87, 11: “submovere Euros Pellibus inversis,” turned inside out, Juv. 14, 187.—
B. Trop., inverted, perverted: annus, inverted, brought back to its beginning, i. e. completed, ended, Hor. S. 1, 1, 36: “pro curia, inversique mores!” perverted, corrupt, id. C. 3, 5, 7: “consuetudo,” Quint. 3, 9, 9: “verba,” perverted from their proper meanings, ambiguous, Ter. Heaut. 2, 3, 131; so, “too, verba,” dark, obscure, Lucr. 1, 642. — Neutr. sing. as adv.: inversum , upside down: “surculis inversum superpositis,” Sol. 8.
