inflect
Americanverb (used with object)
-
inflects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
inflected,
past participle, past
-
inflecting
present participle
-
to alter, adapt, or modulate (the voice).
-
to alter or adapt in tone or character: jazz-inflected music.
the power of storytelling inflected through a feminist sensibility;
jazz-inflected music.
-
Grammar.
-
to apply inflection to (a word).
-
to recite or display all or a distinct set of the inflections of (a word); decline or conjugate.
-
-
to bend; turn from a direct line or course.
-
Botany. to bend in.
verb (used without object)
-
inflects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
inflected,
past participle, past
-
inflecting
present participle
verb
-
(grammar) to change (the form of a word) or (of a word) to change in form by inflection
-
(tr) to change (the voice) in tone or pitch; modulate
-
(tr) to cause to deviate from a straight or normal line or course; bend
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
inflectednessnoun
-
inflectornoun
-
inflectiveadjective
-
noninflectedadjective
-
uninflectedadjective
-
uninflectiveadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
inflectsimple
-
inflectssimple
-
have inflectedperfect
-
has inflectedperfect
-
am inflectingprogressive
-
are inflectingprogressive
-
is inflectingprogressive
-
have been inflectingperfect progressive
-
has been inflectingperfect progressive
Past
-
inflectedsimple
-
had inflectedperfect
-
was inflectingprogressive
-
were inflectingprogressive
-
had been inflectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of inflect
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English inflecten, from Latin inflectere “to bend in,” equivalent to in- in- 2 + flectere “to bend, curve”; cf. flex 1
Explanation
To inflect is to speak in a way that reflects — and changes with — your mood. After hearing tragic news, you'll inflect what you say with the sadness you feel. The changing pitch of your voice inflects your words with meaning, and another way to inflect is to change the form of a word for grammatical reasons, including tense, number, or gender. When you inflect verbs, it's also called conjugation. For example, when you change the verb "to be" from "I am" to "we are," you inflect it. The Latin root of inflect is inflectere, "to bend," and also "to change."
Vocabulary lists containing inflect
The Devil's Arithmetic
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Spy School
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
flec, flex
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But his new target price starts to value Tesla on earnings potential in 2030 and beyond, which is when he thinks revenue and margin performance will inflect higher following the current period of hefty spending.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 5, 2026
Under the direction of Sarah Frankcom, the actors inflect the dialogue with welcome variety, although the overall tone remains firmly dispassionate and emotionally colorless, as befits the dialogue’s cool tone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026
Cat shares, again, typically trade at a discount to the market, although the stock’s price-to-earnings ratio tends to be highest before its cyclical earnings inflect higher.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2025
If the two producers’ generally dissimilar sounds — Dessner leans pastoral, and Antonoff, synthetic — both inflect the record, it could be anything from folk to indie pop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2024
I read aloud to Miss Sullivan and recited passages from my favourite poets, which I had committed to memory; she corrected my pronunciation and helped me to phrase and inflect.
From The Story of my life; with her letters (1887-1901) and a supplementary account of her education, including passages from the reports and letters of her teacher, Anne Mansfield Sullivan, by John Albert Macy by John Albert Macy
Jefferies analyst Samad Samana expects that investors will return to application-software names “when growth inflects alongside AI revenues,” he wrote in a Sunday note to clients.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 2, 2026
“It’s the absence of God that inflects this great moral responsibility on us,” she told the New Yorker.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 2, 2022
All of this context inflects the piece itself, in which wild brass blasts and drums set the scene — then, cutting through a rising haze of strings, comes Janai Brugger’s mighty soprano.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2020
Later, Shelby is again confronted by Beebe, whose mealy-mouthed bureaucratic jargon and weaselly chicanery inflects the entire drama.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 19, 2019
The subject must be put into the case of the agent, and the participle inflects to agree with the object.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 4 "Hero" to "Hindu Chronology" by Various
Lest we forget, the Iraq War–era jingoism that inflected American pop culture at the time was also a fundamental motif of the 2000s internet.
From Slate ● Mar. 20, 2026
The carrier said Wednesday that demand inflected positively in early July and maintained momentum in the ensuing months, pushing total operating revenue up 1.1% to a third-quarter record of $6.95 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2025
As a result, Western Digital’s free-cash-flow yield inflected positive at the end of 2024 and has increased ever since.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 18, 2025
I think those things are part of it, but they are inflected naturally.
From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2024
Jacob’s was inflected with the rhythms of the Hebrew Bible and the beit midrash where the men of his village studied and argued.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
“We believe the -10 carries a strong pricing profile and will likely be critical for margins inflecting positive in 2027,” wrote RBC analyst Ken Herbert in a preview report.
From Barron's ● Apr. 21, 2026
“We expect the investor debate to remain very sensitive to inflecting top-line momentum.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
“Aggregate hyperscaler cloud revenues are inflecting in 2025 and are expected to continue accelerating in 2026 driven by enterprise AI adoption,” Malik said.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 10, 2025
“While economic uncertainty remains, we believe the profit cycle is inflecting higher,” the strategists wrote in a BofA Global Research report.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 31, 2023
For the Rays are repelled by Bodies in both these Cases, without the immediate Contact of the reflecting or inflecting Body.
From Opticks or, a Treatise of the Reflections, Refractions, Inflections, and Colours of Light by Sir Isaac Newton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
