circumflex

American  

[sur-kuhm-fleks] / ˈsɜr kəmˌflɛks /

adjective

1. Phonetics, Orthography. consisting of, indicated by, or bearing the diacritic ^, ˘, or ~, placed over a vowel symbol in some languages to show that the vowel or the syllable containing it is pronounced in a certain way, as, in French, that the vowel so marked is of a certain quality and long, in Albanian, that the vowel is nasalized and stressed, or, in Classical Greek, that the syllable bears the word accent and is pronounced, according to the ancient grammarians, with a rise and fall in pitch.

2. Phonetics, Orthography. pronounced with or characterized by the quality, quantity, stress, or pitch indicated by such a mark.

3. bending or winding around.

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noun

1. Phonetics, Orthography. a circumflex mark or accent.

verb (used with object)

1. to bend around.

circumflex British  

/ ˈsɜːkəmˌflɛks /

noun

1. a mark (^) placed over a vowel to show that it is pronounced with rising and falling pitch, as in ancient Greek, as a long vowel rather than a short one, as in French, or with some other different quality

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adjective

1. (of certain nerves, arteries, or veins) bending or curving around

Other Word Forms

• circumflexion
  noun

Etymology

Origin of circumflex

1555–65; < Latin circumflexus, equivalent to circum- circum- + flexus, past participle of flectere to bend; see flex ¹

Example Sentences

The Circumflex is a union of the two inflections, and is of two kinds; viz., the Rising and the Falling Circumflex.

From The Canadian Elocutionist by Howard, Anna Kelsey

Among the larger branches given off from its anterior portion are two descending, one on each side of the extensor pedis, to assist in the formation of the Circumflex Artery of the Coronary Cushion.

From Diseases of the Horse's Foot by Reeks, Harry Caulton

"When both the upward and the downward slides occur in pronouncing a syllable, they are called a Circumflex or Wave."

From The Grammar of English Grammars by Brown, Goold

Circumflex sensation was impaired, but not absent at the time the condition of the muscle was noted—a favourable prognostic sign of much importance.

From Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900 Being Mainly a Clinical Study of the Nature and Effects of Injuries Produced by Bullets of Small Calibre by Makins, George Henry

Circumflex in the vocative of Ζεύς, 210. —— in Sanskrit, 233.

From Chips from a German Workshop - Volume IV Essays chiefly on the Science of Language by Müller, F. Max (Friedrich Max)