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reflection

[ ri-flek-shuhn ]
/ rɪˈflɛk ʃən /
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See synonyms for: reflection / reflections on Thesaurus.com
noun
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Also especially British, re·flex·ion .

Origin of reflection

1350–1400; Middle English <Late Latin reflexiōn- (stem of reflexiō) a bending back, equivalent to Latin reflex(us) (see reflex) + -iōn--ion

OTHER WORDS FROM reflection

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH reflection

diffraction, diffusion, reflection , rarefaction, refraction
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to reflection

consideration, contemplation, idea, impression, meditation, observation, opinion, rumination, view, echo, image, light, picture, absorption, cerebration, cogitation, deliberation, imagination, musing, pensiveness

British Dictionary definitions for reflection

reflection

less commonly reflexion

/ (rɪˈflɛkʃən) /
noun
the act of reflecting or the state of being reflected
something reflected or the image so produced, as by a mirror
careful or long consideration or thought
implicit or explicit attribution of discredit or blame
maths a transformation in which the direction of one axis is reversed or which changes the sign of one of the variables
anatomy the bending back of a structure or part upon itself

Derived forms of reflection

reflectional or reflexional, adjective
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

Scientific definitions for reflection

reflection
[ rĭ-flĕk′shən ]
The change in direction of a wave, such as a light or sound wave, away from a boundary the wave encounters. Reflected waves remain in their original medium rather than entering the medium they encounter.♦ According to the law of reflection, the angle of reflection of a reflected wave is equal to its angle of incidence. Compare refraction. See more at wave.
Something, such as sound, light, or heat, that is reflected.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for reflection

reflection

A bouncing of light off a surface. People see themselves in mirrors through reflection. (Compare refraction.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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