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Adverse vs. Averse
Many people find themselves confused when faced with the choice between adverse and averse. While these two adjectives have many similarities, they are not used interchangeably.
If you want to describe a negative reaction to something (such as a harmful side effect from medication) or dangerous meteorological conditions (such as a snowstorm), adverse is the correct choice; you would not say that you had an averse reaction to medication or that there was averse weather.
Averse is most commonly followed by the preposition to (as in "she is averse to shellfish"), but not in every case; you can, for example, describe someone as “risk averse." Normally, averse to signifies a degree of dislike and avoidance, but when preceded by the word not (as in “he was not averse to having another drink”), it may be used as a pointedly understated way to express an interest in something.
In short, adverse tends to be used to describe effects, conditions, and results; while averse refers to feelings and inclinations.
Examples of adverse in a Sentence
Lawyers Weekly USA, 4 Oct. 1999
On more than one occasion his decrees provoked riots, and there were those who voiced adverse opinions on the Duke in public.
—Alison Weir, The Princes in the Tower, 1992
The plant tolerates adverse conditions …
—Dave Dunn, Fine Gardening, January/February 1991
all the adverse publicity really caused the movie star's popularity to suffer
the adverse effects of the drug are too severe to allow it to be marketed
Geri Stengel, Forbes.com, 6 June 2025
Mifepristone is currently part of that program, though a wealth of research has shown that less than 0.5% of women who take it have serious adverse reactions.
—Aria Bendix, NBC news, 5 June 2025
An ectopic pregnancy is not caused by mifepristone and should not be considered a serious adverse event.
—Nicole Brown Chau, CBS News, 4 June 2025
The study also breaks down serious adverse events into categories including sepsis, infection and emergency room visit, even though an ER visit alone does not count as an adverse event under the FDA definition.
—Joseph Choi, The Hill, 3 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for adverse
Cite this Entry
“Adverse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adverse. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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adjective
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