Adjacent Words

Reflex definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

RE'FLEX, a. [L. reflexus.]
1. Directed back; as a reflex act of the soul, the turning of the intellectual eye inward upon its own actions.
2. Designating the parts of a painting illuminated by light reflected from another part of the same picture.
3. In botany, bent back; reflected.
REFLEX', n. Reflection. [Not used.]
REFLEX', v.t.
1. To reflect.
2. To bend back; to turn back. [Little used.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: without volition or conscious control; "the automatic shrinking of the pupils of the eye in strong light"; "a reflex knee jerk"; "sneezing is reflexive" [syn: automatic, reflex, reflexive] n
1: an automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus [syn: reflex, reflex response, reflex action, instinctive reflex, innate reflex, inborn reflex, unconditioned reflex, physiological reaction]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Latin reflexus, past participle of reflectere to reflect Date: 1508 1. a. archaic reflected heat, light, or color b. a mirrored image c. a copy exact in essential or peculiar features 2. a. an automatic and often inborn response to a stimulus that involves a nerve impulse passing inward from a receptor to a nerve center and thence outward to an effector (as a muscle or gland) without reaching the level of consciousness — compare habit 7 b. the process that culminates in a reflex and comprises reception, transmission, and reaction — called also reflex action c. plural the power of acting or responding with adequate speed d. a way of thinking or behaving 3. a linguistic element (as a word or sound) or system (as writing) that is derived from a prior and especially an older element or system <boat is the reflex of Old English b?t> II. adjective Etymology: Latin reflexus Date: 1649 1. directed back on the mind or its operations ; introspective 2. reflexed 3. produced or carried out in reaction, resistance, or return 4. of an angle being between 180° and 360° 5. of, relating to, or produced by a reflex without intervention of consciousness • reflexly adverb

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & n. --adj. 1 (of an action) independent of the will, as an automatic response to the stimulation of a nerve (e.g. a sneeze). 2 (of an angle) exceeding 180°. 3 bent backwards. 4 (of light) reflected. 5 (of a thought etc.) introspective; directed back upon itself or its own operations. 6 (of an effect or influence) reactive; coming back upon its author or source. --n. 1 a reflex action. 2 a sign or secondary manifestation (law is a reflex of public opinion). 3 reflected light or a reflected image. 4 a word formed by development from an earlier stage of a language. Phrases and idioms: reflex arc Anat. the sequence of nerves involved in a reflex action. reflex camera a camera with a ground-glass focusing screen on which the image is formed by a combination of lens and mirror, enabling the scene to be correctly composed and focused. Derivatives: reflexly adv. Etymology: L reflexus (as REFLECT)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reflex Re"flex (r?"fl?ks), a. [L. reflexus, p. p. of reflectere: cf. F. r['e]flexe. See Reflect.] 1. Directed back; attended by reflection; retroactive; introspective. The reflex act of the soul, or the turning of the intellectual eye inward upon its own actions. --Sir M. Hale. 2. Produced in reaction, in resistance, or in return. 3. (Physiol.) Of, pertaining to, or produced by, stimulus or excitation without the necessary intervention of consciousness. Reflex action (Physiol.), any action performed involuntarily in consequence of an impulse or impression transmitted along afferent nerves to a nerve center, from which it is reflected to an efferent nerve, and so calls into action certain muscles, organs, or cells. Reflex nerve (Physiol.), an excito-motory nerve. See Exito-motory.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reflex Re"flex (r?"fl?ks; formerly r?*fl?ks"), n. [L. reflexus a bending back. See Reflect.] 1. Reflection; the light reflected from an illuminated surface to one in shade. Yon gray is not the morning's eye, 'Tis but the pale reflex of Cynthia's brow. --Shak. On the depths of death there swims The reflex of a human face. --Tennyson. 2. (Physiol.) An involuntary movement produced by reflex action. Patellar reflex. See Knee jerk, under Knee.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Reflex Re*flex" (r?*fl?ks"), v. t. [L. reflexus, p. p. of reflectere. See Reflect.] 1. To reflect. [Obs.] --Shak. 2. To bend back; to turn back. --J. Gregory.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(reflexes) 1. A reflex or a reflex action is something that you do automatically and without thinking, as a habit or as a reaction to something. Walsh fumbled in his pocket, a reflex from his smoking days... N-COUNT 2. A reflex or a reflex action is a normal, uncontrollable reaction of your body to something that you feel, see, or experience. ...tests for reflexes, like tapping the knee or the heel with a rubber hammer. N-COUNT 3. Your reflexes are your ability to react quickly with your body when something unexpected happens, for example when you are involved in sport or when you are driving a car. It takes great skill, cool nerves and the reflexes of an athlete. N-PLURAL

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Retroactive, introspective, reflective. 2. (Bot.) Reflected, bent back, reflexed.

Moby Thesaurus

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