versus

[vur-suh s, -suh z] /ˈvɜr səs, -səz/

preposition

against (used especially 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.

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 Middle English < Latin: towards, i.e., turned so as to face (something), opposite, over against, orig. past participle of vertere to turn; see verse

Can be confused

verses, versus.

Examples from the web for versus

The pesticides used in organic farming are about five versus hundreds of the conventional agriculture.
The difference being one of culture and history versus some notion of biology.
Once you have a folder of ideas, it's time to do a reality check on needs versus desires.
If there's a debate that sums up post-9/11 politics, it's security versus privacy.
Then he came back inside and tried to engage us in a conversation about literal versus figurative speech.
It's order versus chaos, which is what it always was.
But, she explains, there's a difference between a high-functioning workaholic versus a sloppy workaholic.
But in this instance, the trade-off is not merely one of extra costs for farmers versus extra comforts for their charges.
Try and find water that has different sources and compare such as well water versus treated water.
After all, the two types require seemingly disparate talents: physical prowess versus intellect.

British Dictionary definitions for versus

versus

/ˈvɜːsəs/

preposition

(esp in a competition or lawsuit) against; in opposition to v, (esp US) vs

as opposed to; in contrast with

Word Origin

C15: from Latin: turned (in the direction of), opposite, from vertere to turn

Word Origin and History for versus

prep.

mid-15c., in legal case names, denoting action of one party against another, from Latin versus "turned toward or against," from past participle of vertere (frequentative versare) "to turn," from PIE *wert- "to turn, wind," from root *wer- (3) "to turn, bend" (cf. Old English -weard "toward," originally "turned toward," weorthan "to befall," wyrd "fate, destiny," literally "what befalls one;" Sanskrit vartate "turns round, rolls;" Avestan varet- "to turn;" Old Church Slavonic vruteti "to turn, roll," Russian vreteno "spindle, distaff;" Lithuanian verciu "to turn;" Greek rhatane "stirrer, ladle;" German werden, Old English weorðan "to become" (for sense, cf. turn into); Welsh gwerthyd "spindle, distaff;" Old Irish frith "against").