reflex
/ˈɹiːflɛks/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.44 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The descendant of an earlier language element, such as a word or phoneme, in a daughter language.
noun
The ancestor word corresponding to a descendant.
noun
A reflection or an image produced by a reflection; the light reflected from an illuminated surface to one in shade.
adj
Bent, turned back or reflected.
adj
Produced automatically by a stimulus.
adj
Having greater than 180 degrees but less than 360 degrees.
Example Sentences
- "For a while, I shall have to make a conscious effort to smile, nod, stand and perform the thousands of little gestures which constitute life on Earth, and then those gestures will become reflexes again."
- "He met Luis Suarez's cross at the far post, only for Chelsea keeper Petr Cech to show brilliant reflexes to deflect his header on to the bar. Carroll turned away to lead Liverpool's insistent protests that the ball had crossed the line but referee Phil Dowd and assistant referee Andrew Garratt waved play on, with even a succession of replays proving inconclusive."
- "The Middle Korean reflex for mey was mwoy 뫼"
- "The superstition of the loup-garou, or werewolf, belongs to the folklore of most modern nations, and has its reflex in the story of "Little Red Riding-hood" and others."
- "A reflex camera uses a mirror to reflect the image onto a ground-glass viewfinder."
- "Yon gray is not the morning’s eye, ’Tis but the pale reflex of Cynthia's brow."
Etymology
From Late Latin reflexus, past participle of reflectere (“to bend back”), equivalent to re- + flex. Photography sense is from noun sense meaning “reflection”. Compare English reflect.
Word Breakdown
Usage
Inflected Forms
reflexes (plural)
more reflex (comparative)
most reflex (superlative)
reflexes (present, singular)
reflexing (participle, present)
reflexed (participle, past)
reflexed (past)