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Adverse vs. Averse: What's the Difference?
Quick answer
- Adverse means harmful or unfavorable, and describes things or conditions.
- Averse means strongly disliking or opposed to something, and describes people.
The difference
Adverse goes with things: adverse weather, adverse effects. Averse goes with people and is usually followed by “to”: risk-averse, not averse to change.
Adverse
- Usually
- adjective
- Think
- harmful
- Meaning
- Harmful, unfavorable or working against you.
- Example
- The medicine has few adverse effects.
Averse
- Usually
- adjective
- Think
- unwilling
- Meaning
- Having a strong dislike of or opposition to something.
- Example
- She's not averse to working late when it matters.
When to use adverse
Use adverse for conditions, results or reactions that cause harm or difficulty.
- The game was canceled due to adverse weather.
- The news had an adverse impact on sales.
When to use averse
Use averse about a person's feelings, usually with “to.”
- He's averse to taking risks.
- Investors grew risk-averse.
Remember it
Averse and aversion both describe how a person feels. Adverse things add difficulty.
Common mix-up
Incorrect: I'm not adverse to trying something new.
Correct: I'm not averse to trying something new.
A person's dislike (or lack of it) is averse.
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The flight was delayed by _____ conditions.
My cat is _____ to baths.
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