A query in which the IP address is used to determine the DNS name for the computer.

A DNS query for a resource record that resolves an IP address to its corresponding fully qualified domain name.

Generally speaking, a reverse lookup is the reverse of what is a typical query for a given context.

In DNS, a query process by which the IP address of a host computer is searched to find its friendly DNS domain name. In DNS Manager, reverse lookup zones are based on the in-addr.arpa domain name and typically hold pointer (PTR) resource records. See also: Domain Name System (DNS); in-addr.arpa domain; pointer (PTR) resource record; zone

reverse DNS lookup The opposite of a DNS lookup. DNS works like the phone book: in a DNS lookup, you have a name (such as watchguard.com) but you want the number (an IP address). In a reverse lookup, you have the number (e.g., 64.119.131.128), but you want to find the domain name associated with it (e.g., watchguard.com).