An inverse function is a function that reverses the effect of the original function. If you have a function f(x) that takes an input x and produces an output y, the inverse function, denoted as f⁻¹(y), takes that output y and returns the original input x. In simpler terms, applying the inverse function to the output of the original function brings you back to the starting point. For a function to have an inverse, it must be one-to-one, meaning each output is produced by only one input. This property ensures that the inverse function is well-defined. Common examples of inverse functions include addition and subtraction or multiplication and division.