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deflect

[dih-flekt]
verb (used with or without object)
  1. to bend or turn aside; turn from a true course or straight line; swerve.
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Origin of deflect

1545–55; < Latin dēflectere to bend down, turn aside, equivalent to dē- de- + flectere to bend, turn
Related formsde·flect·a·ble, adjectivede·flec·tor, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for deflector

Historical Examples of deflector

  • Air is also admitted between the deflector and the glass chimney.

    Gas Burners

    Owen Merriman

  • The usual form of deflector plate is provided at the top of the piston and one may consider it as two pistons in one.

    Aviation Engines

    Victor Wilfred Pag

  • Beneath the mixer was a hopper provided with a deflector which directed the concrete to right or left as desired.

    Concrete Construction

    Halbert P. Gillette

  • I rushed back and forth like a lost calf, trying to recall what a deflector was, and I couldn't distinguish thoiteen from three.

    The Conquest

    Oscar Micheaux

  • There are remains of eight roof pilasters, a central fireplace, a deflector, and a ventilator shaft in the kiva.

British Dictionary definitions for deflector

deflect

verb
  1. to turn or cause to turn aside from a course; swerve
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Derived Formsdeflector, noun

Word Origin for deflect

C17: from Latin dēflectere, from flectere to bend
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for deflector

deflect

v.

1550s, from Latin deflectere "to bend (something) aside or downward," from de- "away" (see de-) + flectere "to bend" (see flexible). Originally transitive, the intransitive sense is first recorded 1640s. Related: Deflected; deflecting.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper