I notice that many people, including the English native speakers, love to use a phrase “Please revert by ... “ in their emails. I have checked the Cambridge dictionary and found that 'revert' should always be followed by preposition 'to'. Secondly, 'revert' does not bear the same meaning as 'reply'. Please comment if this phrase is acceptable in the real English world.
The statement was “Please revert by email”. I guess the meaning is “Please reply by email”. This was not a typing mistake as I have received similar statements from different persons. It seems very common for people to use 'revert' as a replacement for 'reply'. This is also true for English native speakers. My question was whether 'revert' can have the same meaning as 'reply'.
The real meaning of 'revert' is 'to go or come back to an earlier time/state'. In Hong Kong, we have got into the habit of using it incorrectly. We really mean, 'reply'.
'Reply' is a simple and familiar word. Most people can use it correctly and understand it. 'Reply' is Plain English. Avoid uncommon, or official sounding words like 'revert'. You can see how these words can cause problems.