Versus means against, as one side set opposite another. England versus France, style versus substance, the case of Smith versus Jones.
It is abbreviated v in British legal citation and vs in general use, and lawyers say and rather than versus when reading a case aloud. It is Latin for turned towards or facing, from the same verb as version and reverse.
1prepositionversusAgainst, as one side set opposite another.
“The first game of the tournament is Brazil versus Germany.”
versus is an opposition.
Latin versus means facing, the past participle of vertere, to turn. Version and reverse come from the same turning.
Proto-Indo-European
*wert-
Latin
versus — facing
Middle English
versus
English, today
versus
Built from
From Middle English versus, borrowed from Latin versus (“facing”), past participle of vertō (“to turn, change, overthrow, destroy”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA