You're in a technical interview and the interviewer asks you to walk through how you'd handle reverting a merge commit in production. Knowing the command is useful, but interviewers are listening for judgment, safety, and clarity. This post breaks down what git revert merge actually does, how to use it, why the re-merge scenario is interview gold, and exactly how to explain these ideas so you sound confident and experienced.

What does git revert merge actually do

At a high level git revert merge creates a new commit that undoes the changes introduced by a previous merge commit rather than erasing history. This is the key behavioral difference interviewers expect you to explain early: revert is non‑destructive and safe for shared branches, while commands that rewrite history are destructive and risk breaking other people’s work CloudBees Git Docs.

• Saying "it deletes the merge" is a red flag. Instead, say "it makes a new commit that reverses the net effect of the merge while preserving the original commit graph".

• This demonstrates you understand collaboration risks and why teams prefer history-preserving fixes.

• Why that matters in an interview

• git revert (non‑destructive): creates a new commit that negates the changes.

• git reset (history rewrite): moves branch pointers and can remove commits — dangerous once pushed.

Quick conceptual contrast
Cite: Git Docs and CloudBees.

How do you run git revert merge and what does the -m flag mean

• Command: git revert -m 1

• The -m parent-number flag tells Git which parent should be treated as the mainline when inverting the merge.

Core syntax

• A merge commit has two (or more) parents. -m 1 says "treat parent 1 as the mainline and create a revert that yields the diff between the merge result and parent 1".

• Interviewers like this detail because it proves you grasp the structure of merge commits, not just the surface command Git Docs.

Explain the -m detail aloud

1. Identify the merge commit hash: git log --merges

2. Run: git revert -m 1

3. Resolve conflicts if present, then commit the revert

4. Push the revert to the shared branch

5. Step by step example you can speak through

Practical interview tip
Be ready to draw two parent commits and the merge commit on a whiteboard and show which parent -m 1 refers to. Cite how merge behavior varies with fast-forward versus three-way merges when asked for nuance Atlassian.

What happens when you need to re merge after a git revert merge

This re‑merge story is where experienced candidates stand out. It commonly comes up as a followup question.

• You merged feature branch F into main, then reverted that merge because of a bug.

• Later you fix the bug on F and want those changes back into main.

Typical scenario

1. You originally did: merge F into main → merge commit M

2. You reverted the merge: git revert -m 1 M → revert commit R

3. To bring the changes back you must revert the revert: git revert → creates commit R2 that reapplies the original changes

4. Then you can merge again if necessary

5. Pattern to explain

• Because the revert commit R records intent to negate M. Simply re-merging F may be treated by Git as already integrated; reverting the revert is the explicit way to reapply the patch that was previously removed dev.to guide on confusion and practical tutorials on undoing merges HowToGeek.

Why this exists

• Use the phrase "revert the revert" and explain why Git needs that explicit act to reintroduce previously negated changes.

• Mention potential merge conflicts while reverting a revert and how you'd resolve them.

Interviewable talking points

When should you use git revert merge versus other undo methods

Interviewers want to see sound judgment, not just command knowledge. Lay out a clear decision framework.

• The merge has already been pushed to a shared branch and other people may have based work on it.

• You need to preserve an auditable history of the reversal.

• You want a non‑destructive undo that is visible in the log CloudBees.

When to use git revert merge

• You have not pushed the commit and you want to rewrite history locally.

• Team agreement exists that history can be rewritten; otherwise avoid reset on shared branches Git Docs.

When to use git reset

• git checkout (or git restore): for discarding local uncommitted changes.

• Creating a new branch and cherry-picking: when you need to craft a clean sequence of commits for reintroduction.

When to use other tools

• "Use revert for published merges to avoid disrupting teammates. Use reset only for local, unpublished history rewriting."

How to say it in an interview

How do you answer common interview questions about git revert merge

Below are common prompts and sample concise answers you can memorize and adapt.

Q: What's the difference between reverting and resetting a merge
A: Reverting creates a new commit that undoes changes and preserves history; resetting moves branch pointers and rewrites history so it is unsafe once pushed Git Docs.

Q: If you reverted a merge and later need those changes back what do you do
A: Revert the revert commit to reapply the changes, then merge again if required dev.to guide.

Q: Why use the -m flag
A: A merge commit has multiple parents; -m chooses which parent Git should compare against when making the inverse patch Git Docs.

Q: Can reverting cause conflicts
A: Yes. A revert can conflict and must be resolved like any other commit; explain conflict resolution workflow in your answer.

Interview tip
Answer in three parts: 1) one-sentence definition, 2) why it matters team-wise, 3) a concise command example. This structure reads well to technical and behavioral interviewers.

What are real world production scenarios where git revert merge matters

Concrete scenarios you can recount or adapt into a story during interviews

1. Hotfix rollback

2. A merge introduced a regression after a deployment. You revert the merge on main to get production back to stable state and open a rollback ticket.

3. Premature feature merge

4. A PR was merged too early. Reverting that merge prevents feature exposure while a fix is implemented.

5. Audit and compliance

6. Some teams must preserve an explicit record of changes and rollbacks for audits; revert commits provide that trace.

• To nontechnical stakeholders: "We deployed a change that caused a regression. We're creating a new update that undoes that change and will redeploy a corrected version."

• To engineers: include commit hashes, a short description of why you reverted, and steps to reapply if needed.

How to communicate to stakeholders

Cite practical guidance on undoing merges and communicating intent: Git Tower FAQ and Atlassian merge docs.

What are the common interview red flags when discussing git revert merge

Avoid these pitfalls in your explanation

• Saying revert deletes history — instead emphasize it creates a new commit.

• Confusing -m semantics — always be ready to draw parent commits when asked.

• Suggesting git reset on a pushed merge without caveats — that signals lack of collaboration awareness.

• Oversimplifying re‑merge logic — if you can’t explain revert-the-revert, prepare that scenario.

• Acknowledge briefly, correct the misconception, and pivot to why the corrected approach is safer in teams.

How to recover during an interview if you slip

How can you practice git revert merge to prepare for interviews

Active practice beats passive reading. A short practice plan you can execute in an hour

1. Create a small repo with two branches: main and feature.

2. Make commits on feature, merge into main, then revert the merge: git revert -m 1 .

3. Try reverting the revert and re-merging after making a new fix on feature.

4. Practice explaining each step aloud or to a peer, drawing the commit graph.

Use these resources for hands-on reading and examples: GeeksforGeeks undo merge guide and Atlassian merge tutorial.

What quick reference commands should you memorize for git revert merge

Keep this short list memorized and use it on the whiteboard

• Show merge commits: git log --merges

• Revert a merge commit: git revert -m 1

• Revert a revert commit: git revert

• Abort a conflicted revert during resolution: git revert --abort

# find merges
git log --merges

# revert merge treating parent 1 as mainline
git revert -m 1 <merge-commit-hash>

# if you later want the merged changes back
git revert <hash-of-revert-commit></hash-of-revert-commit></merge-commit-hash>

Code snippet

• Ask yourself and state: Is the merge pushed and shared If yes use revert If no consider reset

Decision prompt for interview answers

How can Verve AI Interview Copilot help you with git revert merge

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What are the most common questions about git revert merge

Q: What does git revert merge do
A: It makes a new commit that undoes a merge while preserving history

Q: How do you choose the -m parent with git revert merge
A: -m selects which parent to treat as the mainline when computing the inverse

Q: How do you bring back changes after git revert merge
A: Revert the revert commit to reapply the changes then merge if needed

Q: Is git revert merge safe on shared branches
A: Yes it is safe because it preserves history and creates a reversible record

Final practice questions to prepare for interviews about git revert merge

• Walk me through reverting a merge on the whiteboard and explain -m

• If you reverted a merge to fix production what would you say to stakeholders

• Explain the difference between revert and reset in one concise sentence

• Describe how you would reintroduce a previously reverted merge

• CloudBees explanation of revert and safety CloudBees

• Official git revert documentation Git Docs

• Practical confusion around revert and remerge dev.to

• Atlassian guide to merges and parent commits Atlassian

References