rē^trō-versus or -sum (-vorsus, and sync. rē^trōrsus, -sum, also rē^-trōsus, Tert. Apol. 19), a, um, adj. verto, turned back or backwards (adj. very rare, but freq. as adv.; v. infra). Form rē^-trōversus: Medusae Ipse retroversus squalentia prodidit ora, Ov. M. 4, 655: retroversi ortus omen, Sol. 4.

— Trop.: argumentum, confuted, Lact. 1, 16 fin.

— Form rē^trōrsus: retrorsā manu, Plin. 26, 9, 60, § 93: denique saepe retrorsa respiciens (mulier) substitit, App. M. 2, 6 Hild. p. 101 Oud. (retrorsus, p. 101 Elm.).

— Trop., back, as to time, former, earlier; so only in comp.: retrosior, older, Tert. Apol. 19.

—Hence, adv., in four forms: retrorsum (the predom. one, class.), retrorsus, retrovorsum, and retroversus, back, backwards, behind. Lit. Form rē^trōrsum: me vestigia terrent, Omnia te adversum spectantia, nulla retrorsum, Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 75: vela dare, id. C. 1, 34, 3; cf.: mutata te ferat aura, id. Ep. 1, 18, 88: rejectae Hannibalis minae, id. C. 4, 8, 16; cf. redire, Plin. 9, 31, 51, § 99.

— Form rē^trōrsus: dare terga metu, Val. Fl. 3, 268: cedentem, Sil. 11, 513; App. M. 3, p. 143, 39.

— Form rē^trōvorsum: cedam, imitabor nepam, Plaut. Fragm. ap. Non. 145, 14; Macr. S. 1, 17.

— Form rē^trōversus: colonia crescit tamquam coda vituli, Petr. 44, 12.

— Trop. In time, back, before, earlier (jurid. Lat.): retrorsus ad id tempus, etc., Dig. 15, 1, 32 fin.: retrorsum se actio refert, ib. 13, 5, 18.

— In other relations, back, backwards, in return, in reversed order. Form rē^trōr-sum: ex terrā aqua, ex aquā oritur aer, ex aere aether; deinde retrorsum vicissim ex aethere aer, etc., Cic. N. D. 2, 33, 84 (cf. the like use of retro, Lucr. 1, 785): ut viros ac feminas, diem ac noctem dicas potius, quam retrorsum, Quint. 9, 4, 23; 7, 1, 25: quaedam et retrorsum idem valent, id. 5, 9, 6: sed omnia retrorsum, Flor. 4, 12, 25.

— Form rē^trōrsus: ac si retrorsus homo mihi venisset, Dig. 44, 3, 6, § 1.