inflection

American  

[in-flek-shuhn] / ɪnˈflɛk ʃən /

especially British, inflexion

noun

inflections plural

1. modulation of the voice; change in pitch or tone of voice.

2. Grammar. Also

   1. the process or device of adding affixes to or changing the shape of a base to give it a different syntactic function without changing its form class.

   2. the paradigm of a word.

   3. a single pattern of formation of a paradigm.

      noun inflection; verb inflection.

   4. the change in the shape of a word, generally by affixation, by means of which a change of meaning or relationship to some other word or group of words is indicated.

   5. the affix added to produce this change, as the -s in dogs or the -ed in played.

   6. the systematic description of such processes in a given language, as in serves from serve, sings from sing, and harder from hard (contrasted with derivation).

3. a bend or angle.

4. Mathematics. a change of curvature from convex to concave or vice versa.

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inflection British  

/ ɪnˈflɛkʃən /

noun

1. modulation of the voice

2. (grammar) a change in the form of a word, usually modification or affixation, signalling change in such grammatical functions as tense, voice, mood, person, gender, number, or case

3. an angle or bend

4. the act of inflecting or the state of being inflected

5. maths a change in curvature from concave to convex or vice versa See also point of inflection

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inflection Cultural  

1. A change in the form of a word to reflect different grammatical functions of the word in a sentence. English has lost most of its inflections. Those that remain are chiefly possessive ('s), as in “the boy's hat”; plural (-s), as in “the three girls”; and past tense (-d or -ed), as in cared. Other inflections are found in pronouns — as in he, him, his — and in irregular words such as think/thought, child/children, and mouse/mice.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preinflection
  noun
• inflectional
  adjective
• inflectionless
  adjective
• inflectionally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• inflections
  plural

Etymology

Origin of inflection

1525–35; variant spelling of inflexion < Latin inflexiōn- (stem of inflexiō ) a bending. See inflect, -ion

Explanation

Inflection refers to the ups and downs of a language. Even if you can’t understand Italian yet, the inflection in your professor’s voice should tip you off to whether she's asking a question, giving a command, or making a joke. What began in the 1500s as a noun of action spelled inflexion has since evolved into inflection, a word with grammatical connotation. Inflection most often refers to the pitch and tone patterns in a person’s speech: where the voice rises and falls. But inflection also describes a departure from a normal or straight course. When you change, or bend, the course of a soccer ball by bouncing it off another person, that’s an example of inflection.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

inflection inflections

This is an inflection point, with Iran poised precariously between old certainties and future possibilities, both at home and abroad.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

The gene-sequencing platform, alongside new mass-spectrometry and glucose-monitoring products- mean Roche’s diagnostics business is at its most important inflection point in 25 years, the analysts say in a research note.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

But this is 2026, and healthcare is at a technological inflection point.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 27, 2026

Dave & Buster’s ambitious swing arrives at an inflection point for the company, which has had a rough few years.

From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026

He had a different speech inflection, she recalled.

From "Son" by Lois Lowry

But her voice—slightly nasal, with conversational phrasing and clipped inflections informed by hip-hop—is instantly identifiable, and conveys intelligence and intimacy while sounding perfectly natural in glittery electronic productions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026

Analyst Adrienne Yih said the upgrade reflected “recent operational progress, financial inflections, and management’s disciplined actions.”

From Barron's ● Mar. 11, 2026

On Karma, that includes everything from the Brazilian funk rhythms of Ceremony, to pop-punk inflections of In My Head, which riffs on the sounds of Good Charlotte and Avril Lavigne.

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2025

When Sullivan stood up for Watson’s defense, he spoke for almost an hour, pacing and pausing with dramatic inflections.

From Slate ● Dec. 12, 2024

I thought to look at all the children, the many colors of them, listen to the shouting music of their mixed-up voice, inflections of a hundred home languages.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

Related Words

• articulation
• pronunciation
• timbre
• tone of voice