Definitions for reflect
rɪˈflɛktre·flect

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:4.0 / 1 vote

1. reflectverb

   manifest or bring back

   "This action reflects his true beliefs"

2. chew over, think over, meditate, ponder, excogitate, contemplate, muse, reflect, mull, mull over, ruminate, speculateverb

   reflect deeply on a subject

   "I mulled over the events of the afternoon"; "philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years"; "The scientist must stop to observe and start to excogitate"

3. reflect, reverberateverb

   to throw or bend back (from a surface)

   "Sound is reflected well in this auditorium"

4. reflect, shineverb

   be bright by reflecting or casting light

   "Drive carefully--the wet road reflects"

5. reflectverb

   show an image of

   "her sunglasses reflected his image"

6. reflectverb

   give evidence of a certain behavior

   "His lack of interest in the project reflects badly on him"

7. reflectverb

   give evidence of the quality of

   "The mess in his dorm room reflects on the student"

WiktionaryRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. reflectverb

   To bend back (light, etc.) from a surface.

   A mirror reflects the light that shines on it.

2. reflectverb

   To be bent back (light, etc.) from a surface.

   The moonlight reflected from the surface of water.

3. reflectverb

   To mirror, or show the image of something.

   The shop window reflected his image as he walked past.

4. reflectverb

   To be mirrored.

   His image reflected from the shop window as he walked past.

5. reflectverb

   To agree with; to closely follow.

   Entries in English dictionaries aim to reflect common usage.

6. reflectverb

   To give evidence of someone's or something's character etc.

7. reflectverb

   To think seriously; to ponder or consider.

   People do that sort of thing every day, without ever stopping to reflect on the consequences.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. To REFLECTverb

   To throw back.

   Etymology: reflechir, Fr. reflecto, Lat.

   We, his gather’d beams
   Reflected, may with matter sere foment. John Milton.

   Bodies close together reflect their own colour. Dryden.

2. To Reflectverb

   1. To throw back light.

   In dead men’s sculls, and in those holes,
   Where eyes did once inhabit, there were crept,
   As ’twere in scorn of eyes, reflecting gems. William Shakespeare.

   2. To bend back.

   Inanimate matter moves always in a straight line, and never reflects in an angle, nor bends in a circle, which is a continual reflection, unless either by some external impulse, or by an intrinsick principle of gravity. Richard Bentley, Sermons.

   3. To throw back the thoughts upon the past or on themselves.

   The imagination casts thoughts in our way, and forces the understanding to reflect upon them. Brian Duppa.

   In every action reflect upon the end; and in your undertaking it, consider why you do it. Taylor.

   Who saith, who could such ill events expect?
   With shame on his own counsels doth reflect. John Denham.

   When men are grown up, and reflect on their own minds, they cannot find any thing more ancient there, than those opinions which were taught them before their memory began to keep a register of their actions. John Locke.

   It is hard, that any part of my land should be settled upon one who has used me so ill; and yet I could not see a sprig of any bough of this whole walk of trees, but I should reflect upon her and her severity. Joseph Addison, Spectator.

   Let the king dismiss his woes,
   Reflecting on her fair renown;
   And take the cypress from his brows,
   To put his wonted laurels on. Matthew Prior.

   4. To consider attentively.

   Into myself my reason’s eye I turn’d;
   And as I much reflected, much I mourn’d. Matthew Prior.

   5. To throw reproach or censure.

   Neither do I reflect in the least upon the memory of his late majesty, whom I entirely acquit of any imputation. Jonathan Swift.

   6. To bring reproach.

   Errors of wives reflect on husbands still. Dryden.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. reflect

   Reflect refers to the act of bouncing off light, heat, or any form of energy or particles from a surface. It can also mean to think, ponder, or meditate deeply about something. Additionally, it can signify the representation or expression of something in a certain way. It is commonly used in physics, psychology, and philosophy.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Reflect

   to bend back; to give a backwa/d turn to; to throw back; especially, to cause to return after striking upon any surface; as, a mirror reflects rays of light; polished metals reflect heat

2. Reflect

   to give back an image or likeness of; to mirror

3. Reflectverb

   to throw back light, heat, or the like; to return rays or beams

4. Reflectverb

   to be sent back; to rebound as from a surface; to revert; to return

5. Reflectverb

   to throw or turn back the thoughts upon anything; to contemplate. Specifically: To attend earnestly to what passes within the mind; to attend to the facts or phenomena of consciousness; to use attention or earnest thought; to meditate; especially, to think in relation to moral truth or rules

6. Reflectverb

   to cast reproach; to cause censure or dishonor

7. Etymology: [L. reflectere, reflexum; pref. re- re- + flectere to bend or turn. See Flexible, and cf. Reflex, v.]

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Reflect

   rē-flekt′, v.t. to bend back: to throw back after striking upon any surface, as light, &c.—v.i. to be thrown back, as light, heat, &c.: to revolve in the mind: to consider attentively or deeply: to ponder: to cast reproach or censure (with on, upon).—p.adj. Reflect′ed, cast or thrown back: turned upward: reflexed.—adjs. Reflect′ible, capable of being reflected; Reflect′ing, throwing back light, heat, &c.: given to reflection: thoughtful.—adv. Reflect′ingly, with reflection: with censure.—Reflecting telescope, a form of telescope in which the image of the object to be viewed is produced by a concave reflector instead of a lens, as in the refracting telescope. [Fr.,—L. reflectĕre, reflexum—re-, again, flectĕre, to bend.]

Editors ContributionRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. reflect

   To create proof of a behavior.

   The unity did reflect on earth of everyone working together.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on March 5, 2020  

2. ---

   reflect

   To manifest truth.

   The voice of the people did reflect the with their unity being reflected around them.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on March 5, 2020  

3. ---

   reflect

   To review our life, choices, aspirations, goals and thoughts.

   As human beings we take a moment to reflect and affirm our unity, love, relationships, goals and aspirations.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on April 30, 2020  

4. ---

   reflect

   Visual color.

   The picture did reflect the scene of their wedding day.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on February 17, 2020  

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Reflect

   Reflex vs Reflect -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words Reflex and Reflect.

Matched Categories

1. • Acoustics
   • Emit
   • Evidence
   • Indicate
   • Optics
   • Show

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'reflect' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2654

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'reflect' in Written Corpus Frequency: #4045

3. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'reflect' in Verbs Frequency: #202

How to pronounce reflect?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say reflect in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of reflect in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of reflect in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of reflect in a Sentence

1. Andrew Neil:

   There's no requirement under due impartiality for a channel not to have a bias, all it requires is you reflect, to a pretty small degree, what the opposing viewpoint is.

2. David Levithan:

   Teens wanted things that were real, that they connected with, it doesn't have to reflect reality directly. They love 'The Hunger Games' not because it's real in that it happens, but the emotions there are real, and it's very relatable.

3. Novak Djokovic:

   The way that the schedule has been going on in the second week means there is not much time to really reflect on what you have done, my focus right away goes for recovery and the next match.

4. H. Jackson Brown Jr.:

   Remember that children, marriages, and flower gardens reflect the kind of care they get.”

5. Alex Stack:

   The way [ the guidance ] was written didn't accurately reflect the intent, so it was rewritten.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=reflect
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reflect
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=reflect
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reflect
6. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=reflect