reflexn.
/ˈriːflɛks/, U.S. /ˈriˌflɛks/ 1.
a. Reflection of light, heat, etc.; reflected light; light or colour resulting from reflection; an instance of this. Also in extended use. Cf. reflection n. 1. Now rare.Apparently not in common use between the mid 17th and mid 19th centuries.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > reflection > [noun]
reflectiona1398
reverberation?a1475
reflexity?c1500
reflex1508
repercussion1563
resultation1603
rebound1689
the world > matter > colour > colour relationships > [noun] > reflection
reflection1614
reflex1843
reverberation1860
1508 W. Dunbar Goldyn Targe (Chepman & Myllar) in Poems (1998) I. 185 Bewis bathit war in secund bemys Throu the reflex of Phebus visage brycht.
1594 T. Blundeville Exercises iii. ii. iii. f. 179v The lowest Region is hotte by the reflexe of the Sunne, whose beames first striking the earth, doe rebound backe againe to that Region.
1602 W. Fulbecke Parallele or Conf. Law ii. 74 If God doe still vouchsafe the Moone-diall of this darksome life, with the reflexe of his intellectuall illumined influence.
1629 F. Quarles Argalus & Parthenia ii. 73 Shall euery day, wherein the earth does lacke The Suns reflex, b'expell'd the Almanacke?
1647 Earl of Clarendon Contempl. Psalms in Tracts (1727) 437 We shall have always some such rays of comfort from the reflex of that beautiful prospect.
a1711 T. Ken Hymns for Festivals in Wks. (1721) I. 222 Who taught her Love to Heav'n the readiest way On his Reflex of Fontal Godhead's Ray.
1843 T. Carlyle Past & Present ii. ii. 66 The illimitable Ocean, tinting all things with its eternal hues and reflexes.
1853 C. Brontë Villette I. xiv. 299 The reflex from the window..lit his face.
1856 C. Merivale Hist. Romans under Empire IV. xl. 466 The fame of ancient Hellas was mainly a reflex from the preeminent glory of Athens.
1874 G. Lawson Dis. Eye (ed. 2) 159 The margin of the lens exhibiting a brilliant yellow reflex.
1908 J. Davidson Testament 136 A towering cliff..topaz-hued by reflex of the flame that filled the wide and lofty vault of Hell.
b. spec. in Art and Architecture. The light reflected, or supposed to be reflected, from a surface in light to one in shade; a reflection of this kind. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > light and shade > [noun] > light > reflected
reflex1695
1695 J. Dryden tr. R. de Piles in tr. C. A. Du Fresnoy De Arte Graphica 137 The fineness of stuffs or garments which is not to be discern'd but by the Colours, the Reflexes, and more especially by the Lights and Shadows.
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. Reflex, Reflect, in Painting, is understood of those Places in a Picture which are supposed to be illuminated by a Light reflected from some other Body represented in the same Piece.
a1806 J. Barry in R. N. Wornum Lect. on Painting (1848) 182 Masses of light, half-lights, darks, and half-darks, and reflexes.
a1807 J. Opie Lect. on Painting (1809) 100 Gradations of middle tint, local colour, and reflexes.
1842 J. Gwilt Encycl. Archit. ii. iv. 671 The varieties of reflexes are almost infinite.
1908 Burlington Mag. Mar. 344/2 The lecture also on ‘Reflexes’—i.e., reflections of light and colour—and incidental passages in the other lectures should be put on record.
2007 Canberra Times (Nexis) 6 Oct. 24 There is an enormous sense of struggle and tension created between the colour veils with their beautiful and rich reflexes.
a. The act of bending or turning the mind (back) upon (also to) a subject; meditation, reflection. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > thought > continued thinking, reflection, contemplation > thinking about, consideration, deliberation > [noun]
i-mindOE
studyinglOE
mindc1300
bethinking1340
poring1340
regard1348
weighingc1380
contemplationc1390
advisementa1393
deliberationa1393
advicec1405
reckoninga1413
visement?1414
considerancec1420
advisenessc1425
revolutionc1425
rewardc1432
mind-takingc1449
umbethinkingc1450
advisednessc1475
considering1483
beholding1530
meditationa1535
pondering1535
cogitation?1542
expending1545
ponderation1556
perpending1558
well weighing1566
surview1576
reflex1593
revolve1595
lucubration1596
agitation1600
perpension1612
vizamenta1616
pensitation1623
perpensation1623
perpendment1667
ruminating1668
commentationa1670
revolving1670
reflectiona1674
introspectiona1676
propendencya1676
ponderment1728
chawing1845
1593 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie i. iv. 56 It seemeth therefore that there was no other way for Angels to sinne, but by reflex of their vnderstanding vpon themselues.
1635 R. Brathwait tr. M. Silesio Arcadian Princesse i. 36 Themista continues her comforts in dilated measures, upon reflexe had to her owne integrity.
1643 Sir T. Browne Religio Medici (authorized ed.) i. §7 A serious reflex upon my own unworthiness did make me backward from challenging this prerogative of my Soul. View more context for this quotation
1657 T. Wall Comment on Times 47 Pride was first begot in Heaven, by the reflex of an Angel's understanding upon his own excellency.
b. Esp. in the titles of books: a reflection upon a subject, made after consideration. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > saying, maxim, adage > [noun] > observation
consideration1477
observation1550
experience1570
note1577
reflection1610
reflexa1641
sagacities1867
a1641 R. Montagu Acts & Monuments (1642) vii. 377 Saint Jerom's Reflexe upon a passage of Tertullian's examined.
1648 (title) A reflex upon our reformers, with a prayer for the parliament.
1660 J. Howell (title) The Parly of Beasts,..with Reflexes upon the present State of most Countries in Christendome.
3. † a. The image of an object seen in a mirror, or in a surface that acts like a mirror; a reflection. Obsolete.In quot. 1643 in figurative context with allusion to 1 Corinthians 13:12.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > reflection > [noun] > reproducing an image > image produced by
imagec1350
umberc1407
idol1563
reflection1563
reflex1596
shadow-light1623
species1638
repercussion1646
reflect1829
1596 C. M. Second Pt. Nature of Woman i. sig. B 2v A bubling spring, wherein he might see the reflexe of his sorrowfull face.
1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 146 Black shining Marble..so bright and jetty, as we could easily view our reflex, no steel mirror comparing with it.
1643 Sir T. Browne Religio Medici (authorized ed.) i. §13 We behold Him but asquint, upon reflex or shadow. View more context for this quotation
1663 L. Womock Aron-bimnucha or Antidote to cure Calamites 12 Spots in the Sun and Moon are better discovered by observing them in their Reflexes and Images in the Water.
1830 Ld. Tennyson Poems 124 So their wan limbs no more might come between The moon and the moon's reflex in the night.
1850 W. Wordsworth Prelude i. 21 To cut across the reflex of a star That..gleamed Upon the glassy plain.
b. In extended use. An image, reproduction; a thing which reflects or reproduces certain essential features or qualities of an original.Now chiefly U.S., but according to N.E.D. (1905) ‘the usual sense in current use’ in British English.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > [noun] > a representation
form?c1225
figurea1340
likeness1340
print1340
nebshaftc1350
resemblancea1393
visagea1400
similitude?a1425
representationc1450
simulacre1483
representa1500
semblance1513
idea1531
image1531
similitudeness1547
type1559
living image1565
portrait1567
counter-figure1573
shadow1580
countershape1587
umbrage1604
medal1608
reflex1608
remonstrance1640
transcript1646
configurationa1676
phantom1690
facsimile1801
personation1851
featuring1864
zoomorph1883
1608 Bp. J. King Serm. 5 Nov. 32 I appeale to the conscience of your Maiestie, that inwarde reflexe of your Princely heart.
1683 W. Kennett tr. Erasmus Witt against Wisdom 5 My Visage, the exact reflex of my Soul.
1817 S. T. Coleridge Blessed are ye that Sow 78 As the motley reflexes of my experience move in long procession..before me.
1847 B. Disraeli Tancred III. vi. viii. 242 It was race that produced these inimitable forms, the idealised reflex of their own peculiar organisation.
1878 W. E. H. Lecky Hist. Eng. 18th Cent. I. ii. 180 It may even very materially contribute to make legislation a reflex of the popular will.
1903 Amer. Jrnl. Sociol. 9 62 Intellect, being only a reflex of reality, equals money in its want of interest.
a1962 R. Jeffers Coll. Poetry (1991) I. 270 Is it possible that man's passion is only a reflex of much greater torment.
2002 Representations 79 113 The vampirelike monster's unappeasable cruelty and greediness for souls is only a reflex of the ‘religious malignity’ of the church establishment he defies.
c. Linguistics. A word, sound unit, etc., derived by development from an earlier form.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > [noun] > linguistic unit > derived from a comparable form
reflex1880
1880 M. Bloomfield in Amer. Jrnl. Philol. 1 306 The vocalism of the Greek has the largest claim to being a correct, undisturbed reflex of that of the corresponding roots in all the languages of the family.
1890 S. Primer in Publ. Mod. Lang. Assoc. Amer. 5 ii. 196 It is doubtful whether it [sc. the a-sound] is a reflex of the older pronunciation.
1945 Y. Malkiel Devel. Lat. Suffixes -antia & -entia in Romance Langs. iii. 51 in Univ. Calif. Publ. Linguistics 1 iv -entia seems to have taken root in Italy more than anywhere else, as follows from the..reflexes of absentia, haerentia, licentia, negligentia, scientia.
1965 A. Zettersten Stud. Dial. & Vocab. Ancrene Riwle 67 It is necessary to emphasize that this Mercian sound coalesced with the reflexes of /æ/ and /a/ in ME.
1970 Publ. Amer. Dial. Soc. liv. 4 This chapter presents the regionally divergent reflexes of Middle English parent phonemes.
1999 Amer. Jrnl. Philol. 120 166 Cypriot also shows a sibilant reflex of the voiceless labiovelar, but only in the more limited environment of a following [i].
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > [noun] > indirect action or operation
reflexa1613
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > backward movement > [noun] > return towards point of departure
returna1393
returning?c1400
recoursec1405
regress1478
reverture1495
retraira1500
regression1598
reflexa1613
recursion1616
revolture1633
retroition1651
hark back1798
recover1818
a1613 T. Overbury Wife (1614) sig. Bv Whence in their Face the Fayre no pleasure haue, But by reflexe of what thence other take.
1626 W. Laud Serm. v, in Wks. (1847) I. 131 Some directly concern God, and some only by reflex.
1683 D. A. Whole Art Converse 44 Let us abstain from railery least it return by reflex upon our selves.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > [noun] > relation to something or reference > indirect reference or allusion
reflex1630
glance1665
the mind > mental capacity > thought > continued thinking, reflection, contemplation > thinking about, consideration, deliberation > [noun] > in passing
reflex1630
1630 R. Brathwait Eng. Gentleman 15 I have not a little wondered..how any man, having reflex, by the eye of his Soule, to his first fall, should glory in these..rags of shame.
1638 R. Brathwait Spiritual Spicerie 339 When shee casteth her eyes under her in a despicable reflex upon the valley of this world,..she clearly sees, that it was night, and darknesse which shee loved.
1646 J. Gregory Notes & Observ. xix. 95 The præcepts in the Law..are still set downe with a reflex upon the Heathen Rites.
1650 C. Elderfield Civil Right Tythes 148 Sometimes in direct assertion, oftner by glance and occasionall reflexe, but by supposition constantly ever.
6.
a. Physiology. An action that is performed without conscious thought as a response to a stimulus; a reflex action; frequently with distinguishing word. More widely: an automatic, habitual, or instinctive action or response. In plural (chiefly colloquial): a person's power or faculty of performing such actions; speed of reaction.conditioned, patellar, spinal, sucking reflex, etc.: see the first element.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > biological processes > action of nervous system > [noun] > reflex action
reflex1833
reflection1836
reflex action1837
1833 M. Hall in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 123 658 Physiologists have hitherto enumerated only three sources or principles of muscular action,—volition, the motive influence of respiration, and irritability. There is, however , a fourth source of muscular motion distinct from any of these, though not hitherto distinguished, to which I have ventured to give the designation of the reflex... It is not excited immediately, like the movements of irritability, but mediately, in a reflex course..from the part stimulated to the part moved.
1877 G. H. Lewes Physical Basis of Mind 461 The sensations of contact and temperature will excite reflexes.
1894 A. Conan Doyle Mem. Sherlock Holmes 177 I made notes of my patient's pulse and temperature..and examined his reflexes.
1921 G. B. Shaw Back to Methuselah v. 238 Martellus: Control your reflexes, child. The Newly Born: My what! Martellus: Your reflexes. The things you do without thinking.
1976 P. de Vries I hear Amer. Swinging iii. 41 I jumped back from the window in a reflex.
1984 J. R. Tighe & D. R. Davies Pathol. (ed. 4) iii. 11 The body's defences against injurious agents include..the cough reflex and the sneeze reflex.
1992 Daily Tel. (BNC) 12 Apr. 28 City..owed everything to the extraordinary reflexes of their goalkeeper.
2007 Med. Hypotheses 68 62/1 Emesis, or vomiting, is a reflex often associated with the rejection of orally-acquired pathogens.
b. by reflex: as (the result of) a reflex action; (hence) automatically, involuntarily, instinctively.
ΚΠ
1857 Brit. & Foreign Medico-chirurg. Rev. 19 96 The posterior horns..serve chiefly for the co-ordination of the movements produced by reflex.
1920 Times 3 Sept. 8/2 A London success would cause by reflex a local disaster.
1984 M. A. Jarman Dancing nightly in Tavern 6 The bored cowhands.., eyes always on the screen,..lighting Chesterfields by reflex.
1993 P. Livet in D. Fisette Consciousness & Intentionality i. 81 Toads..react by reflex to catch dark spots with their tongue.
2005 New Yorker 21 Mar. 91/1 Allen seems to fall into his Manhattan classicism almost by reflex.
c. In reflexology and similar systems of therapy: any of the points or zones, esp. on the foot, to which pressure may be applied in order to stimulate another part of the body. Frequently attributive, as reflex area, reflex point, etc.
ΚΠ
1948 J. A. Haggard Foot Massage iii. 15 It is detrimental to massage too long on one reflex.
1955 Reno (Nevada) Evening Gaz. 16 Sept. Reflexology. Incredible relief though the reflexes in your feet.
1971 Delaware County (Pa.) Daily Times 2 Feb. 10/4 She illustrated reflex points on the feet for the thyroid, pituitary, the back, a knee and so on.
1992 Which? Nov. 47/2 Reflexologists believe that massage of the reflex points in your feet can be used to treat the corresponding parts of the body.
2003 S. Cressy Reflexology (rev. ed.) 62 The heart reflex is found mainly on the client's left foot between the shoulder line and the diaphragm line.
7. A reflex camera. Frequently in single-lens reflex, twin-lens reflex.See note at reflex adj. 6e.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > photography > camera > [noun] > general types of
box camera1828
daguerreotype1839
view camera1851
pistolgraph1859
pinhole camera1861
panoramic camera1862
pantoscopic camera1865
pistolograph1866
pantoscope1879
detective camera1881
filmograph1881
photographometera1884
photochronograph1887
snap-shooter1890
stand camera1890
tele-objective camera1891
film camera1893
magazine camera1893
panoram1893
telephoto1894
mutograph1897
tele-camera1899
telephote1903
press camera1912
reflex1922
candid camera1929
minicam1935
single-lens reflex1936
plate camera1937
magic eye1938
subminiature1947
miniature1952
all-sky camera1955
microfilmer1959
stereo-camera1959
streak camera1962
gallery camera1964
SLR1964
TLR1965
spy-camera1968
pinhole1976
multi-mode1981
digicam1989
point-and-shoot1991
1895 W. de W. Abney Instantaneous Photogr. p. v (advt.) The ‘Reflex’ Manufacturing Company..Patentees and Sole Manufacturers of the ‘Reflex’ Camera... The actual working lens also serves for the finder.]
1922 Geogr. Jrnl. 59 172 At one time the reflex type of camera was predominant for instantaneous photography, but the reflex is bulky and heavy.
1926–7 Army & Navy Stores Catal. 969/2 The ‘Mentor’ Folding Reflex is constructed..of the finest materials.
1940 A. L. M. Sowerby Wall's Dict. Photogr. (ed. 15) 547 In a single-lens reflex, pressure on the release first lifts the mirror.., and then releases the focal-plane shutter.
1948 H. S. Newcombe Twin-lens Camera Compan. 15 Other people also find it difficult to hold a normal reflex steady.
1958 Oxf. Mail 19 May 7/3 In the single-lens reflex you actually focus by looking through the camera lens with a mirror.
1997 Photon Apr. 15/1 Nikon has just announced the final death of the Nikonos RS, their underwater reflex.
8. Electronics. A reflex circuit (cf. reflex adj. 4a); a radio, loudspeaker, etc., containing such a circuit. rare. Now historical.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic devices or components > [noun]
reflex1924
electronics1948
multiplier1960
electronica1980
1924 Exper. Wireless Mar. 332/1 A notable point about the reflex is that the detector valve, if used, cannot be made to ‘double magnify’.
2004 T. H. Lee Design CMOS Radio-Frequency Integrated Circuits (ed. 2) i. 17 The idea behind the reflex is wonderful and subtle.
Compounds
C1. General attributive in sense 6a. Cf. reflex adj. 3.
reflex apparatus n.
ΚΠ
1852 P. Pickford On True & False Spermatorrhœa 79 These exciting causes, however, lead more easily to seminal evacuation in proportion to the irritability of the reflex apparatus.
1992 Ann. Rev. Neurosci. 15 403 The adaptive role of the cerebellar cortex would appear to be specialized..in enabling simple, stereotyped reflex apparatus to respond differently..under different task conditions.
reflex mechanism n.
ΚΠ
1858 Lancet 13 Nov. 494/1 I must point out, à propos of the stopping of the heart's action by a reflex mechanism, that one of the means employed to restore life in asphyxiated children..is a most dangerous one.
1947 A. D. Imms Outl. Entomol. (ed. 3) ii. 27 (caption) Reflex mechanism of an insect.
1992 Physiol. & Behavior 53 721 Erection is generally viewed as a reflex mechanism that can receive higher CNS [= central nervous system] influences.
reflex stimulus n.
ΚΠ
1845 Lancet 26 July 100/1 A reflex stimulus to the irrito-contractile uterus.
1891 T. Hardy Tess of the D'Urbervilles II. xxiv. 37 Tess's pink hands..[moved] so gently as to be a rhythmic pulsation only, as if they were obeying a reflex stimulus, like a beating heart.
1993 Arch. Oral Biol. 38 971 The smaller increase in rate of protein synthesis..could be mediated by the increased reflex stimuli caused by mastication.
reflex time n.
ΚΠ
1875 Ann. Rec. Sci. & Industry 1874 323 He obtains from these investigations the reflex time—that is to say, the time in which the involuntary action follows the reception of any impression.
2007 Huntsville (Alabama) Time (Nexis) 31 Jan. m4 As seniors age, their reflex times slow down.
C2.
reflex arc n. Physiology the connected series of nerves concerned in the production of a reflex action.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > nervous system > [noun] > specific
sympathetic1808
central nervous system1826
reflex arc1833
projection system1872
autonomic1908
parasympathetic1916
C.N.S.1932
neuroeffector1937
1833 M. Hall in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 123 655 Epilepsy is plainly of two kinds:..the second is an affection of the reflex function, the exciting cause..acting chiefly upon the nerves of the stomach or intestines, which consequently form the first part of the reflex arc.
1958 Florence (S. Carolina) Morning News 5 June b13/1 In polio, these reflex jerks of a tendon may..vanish later because the ‘reflex arc’ is broken.
1991 R. Goldstein Dark Sister viii. 149 The long, low shudder was quite in spite of himself, being the..end of a reflex arc that had entirely bypassed his cerebrum.
reflex hammer n. Medicine a small hammer, typically with a triangular rubber head, used for testing the patellar reflex and similar neurological reflexes; cf. percussion hammer n. (b) at percussion n. Compounds 2.
ΚΠ
1914 A. A. Brill tr. S. Freud Psychopathol. Everyday Life viii. 181 For many years a reflex hammer and a tuning-fork lay side by side on my desk.
1967 Med. Hist. 11 77 For many decades the ‘percussor’ remained in the internist's armamentarium, where Professor Dr. Wilhelm Erb conveniently found it, ready to be converted into a ‘reflex hammer’.
2004 Independent 14 June (Review section) 9/5 An unnamed Derbyshire GP is said to have abandoned the traditional doctor's bag in favour of a fisherman's gilet, and stuffs its pockets with ophthalmoscope, reflex hammer, pens and sundry nostrums.
reflex therapy n. = reflexology n. 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > physiotherapy > [noun] > massage > techniques involving
lomi-lomi1850
fulling1868
anma1891
Swedish massage1911
reflexology1913
reflex therapy1916
zone therapy1917
structural integration1963
postural integration1968
Rolfing1970
tui na1979
Hellerwork1981
1916 G. S. White Lect. Course to Physicans (ed. 5) 112 Every practitioner of the healing art employs reflexes of some kind. Most of them use..spinal reflexes, or reflex therapy in some way.
1956 A. Huxley Adonis & Alphabet 31 Unorthodox medicine tries to influence the autonomic system by direct mechanical action in the form of osteopathy, chiropractic, reflex therapy and acupuncture.
1978 D. E. Bayly Reflexology Today (1982) v. 24 One such case was a lady suffering from cataract that was due for surgery who had wisely decided upon a course of reflex therapy.
2000 Daily Tel. 29 Sept. 22/1 They can get a quick burst of Vertical Reflex Therapy (VRT), a new form of reflexology that is changing the face of this ancient therapy.
reflex volley n. Tennis (and other racket sports) a volley hit as a reflex action.
ΚΠ
1954 Advertiser (Adelaide) 29 Dec. 5/6 Seixas..was always a danger at the net and made some amazing reflex volleys.
1988 Improve your Squash ii. 32/1 (caption) He has the racket raised preparing for a reflex volley and is on his toes for a quick reaction.
2016 Sc. Daily Mail (Nexis) 8 Sept. (Sport section) 86 Nishikori squeezed out a reflex volley to break for 6-5 in the decider.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
reflexadj.
/ˈriːflɛks/, U.S. /ˈriˌflɛks/ I. Senses relating to a mental, notional, or figurative turning back.
1. Philosophy. Now rare.
a. Of thought, sense, knowledge, etc.: that turns back upon itself for observation and examination; derived from or consisting in this action.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > [adjective] > focused on itself
reflex1607
1607 W. Perkins Treat. Mans Imaginations iii. 52 A reflex cogitation or reason, whereby a man iudgeth that he knoweth or thinketh this or that.
a1652 J. Smith Select Disc. (1660) iv. iii. 77 This Reflex knowledge whereby we know what it is to know.
1661 J. Glanvill Vanity of Dogmatizing iii. 18 A pure Intellectual eye may have a sight of it in reflex discoveries.
1707 S. Clarke Second Def. Argument 4 Consciousness, in the most strict and exact Sense of the Word, signifies..the Reflex Act by which I know that I think, and that my Thoughts and Actions are my own and not Anothers.
1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig. Diss. ii. 311 It does not appear, that Brutes have the least reflex Sense of Actions as distinguished from Events.
1819 Gentleman's Mag. Dec. 506 There seems..the same logical difference between our internal reflex senses, as between the external ones.
1850 J. McCosh Method Divine Govt. (ed. 2) iii. i. 330 When the reflex moral faculty, or the conscience, surveys virtuous action, it proclaims it to be good.
1908 Jrnl. Philos., Psychol. & Sci. Methods 5 452 Primitive knowledge..remains..closed up in individual consciousness, [while] reflex knowledge can be communicated to other people, and is capable of indefinite perfection.
1995 Jrnl. Aesthetics & Art Crit. 53 350/2 An internal or ‘reflex’ sense has, for its objects, not the external world of primary qualities but the internal world of ideas.
b. Of a mental action: directed back upon the mind itself to observe its working. Chiefly in reflex act. Cf. reflection n. 7c.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > consciousness > contemplation of self > [adjective] > turned inward
reflexed1595
reflexive1615
reflex1625
reflexible?1642
reflect1647
introverted1782
1625 T. Jackson Treat. Originall of Vnbeliefe li. 462 Refined and purified by being as it were new cast in the modells of our rationall or reflexe conceipts.
1649 Bp. J. Taylor Great Exemplar i. iii. §9 The Soul..can produce the same effects by reflex acts of the understanding.
a1676 M. Hale Primitive Originat. Mankind (1677) i. i. 24 Which I call the reflex act of the Soul, or the turning of the intellectual eye inward upon its own actions.
1704 J. Norris Ess. Ideal World II. iii. 120 I conceive that then thought is said to be..reflex, when the same act of thought terminates upon itself, or is its own object.
1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued I. i. 343 There is a reflex act whereby the mind turns inward upon herself to observe what ideas arise in her view.
1850 J. McCosh Method Divine Govt. (1852) 312 The delightful sensations of moral approbation which rise up on the reflex contemplation of such affection.
1870 J. H. Newman Ess. Gram. Assent ii. vi. 158 An act of consciousness..is a reflex act with its own object, viz. the act of knowledge itself.
1899 Mind Apr. 207 If Arbuckle distinguished his Conscience..from the appreciation of the Beautiful in Art, it would become a further reflex act.
1955 Philos. Q. 5 236 Holding that we know our real selves, not in the same way that we know ideas, but still immediately, by reflex act and notionally.
1995 Aristotelian Soc. Suppl. Vol. 69 16 In Shaftesbury, Locke's ‘reflection’ comes more explicitly than in Locke to exploit its literal meaning, and becomes a reflex act of the mind, a flexing back on itself.
2. Grammar. = reflexive adj. 5. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > [adjective] > reflexive
reciprocal1611
reflexive1677
reflective1716
reflected1719
reflex1810
1810 Crit. Rev. May 40 The personal and reflex pronouns are derived from the Greek.
1873 J. Earle Philol. Eng. Tongue (ed. 2) viii. 437 The accusative pronoun of all the persons performed for a long period the double office of a direct and a reflex pronoun.
1928 Denton (Maryland) Jrnl. 29 Sept. 4/7 A reflex pronoun.
1986 J. M. Liceras Ling. Theory i. 9 The high level of acceptance of resumptive pronouns in the case of Spanish learners may..be due to the fact that reflex pronouns are common in colloquial speech.
3. Physiology. (Of an action, response, etc.) performed independently of the will, as an automatic response to a sensory stimulus; (also) characterized by or relating to such actions. Also in extended use. Frequently in reflex action n. at Compounds. Cf. reflex n. 6a and quot. 1833 there.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > biological processes > action of nervous system > [adjective] > reflex action
consensual1800
reflex1833
reflexive1845
reflectorial1868
reflexogenous1899
1833 M. Hall in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 123 635 (title) On the reflex function of the medulla oblongata and spinalis.
1833 M. Hall in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 123 637 This property is characterized by being excited in its action, and reflex in its course:..an impression made upon the extremities of certain nerves is conveyed to the medulla oblongata..and is reflected along other nerves to parts adjacent to, or remote from, that which has received the impressions... It is by this reflex character that the function to which I have alluded is to be distinguished from every other.
1851 W. B. Carpenter Man. Physiol. (ed. 2) 518 From the best judgment we can form of the actions of the Star-fish,..we may fairly regard the greater number of them as simply reflex.
1899 T. C. Allbutt Syst. Med. VIII. 98 Abnormal visceral or reflex movements, such as..sneezings, yawnings, or hiccoughings.
1922 Brain 44 438 Three of the quadriplegic patients..showed extensive reflex reactions involving the trunk and limbs.
1944 Times 15 Aug. 7/1 Yesterday's slight downward adjustment [in prices] could no doubt be regarded as a familiar reflex movement.
1987 N. Sibal Yatra 204 In a reflex motion his hand lifted the rifle which lay beside him on the grass.
1989 B. Alberts et al. Molecular Biol. Cell (ed. 2) xii. 972 (caption) The hormone oxytocin..is released as a reflex response to the stimulus of suckling.
2003 Nature 1 May 8/2 Rainbow trout have..pain receptors on skin that report stimuli to the brain and cause reflex reactions when an animal's tissue is being damaged.
4. Electronics.
a. Designating a circuit, amplifier, etc., in which the same circuit components are used for amplification of both high- and low-frequency signals (usually the radio and audio frequencies respectively); of or relating to such a device. Now chiefly historical.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic devices or components > [adjective] > amplifying high- or low-frequency signals
reflex1923
1923 Radio News Feb. 1455/1 Very much discussion has been carried on as to the practicability of the so-called reflex circuit—a circuit designed, developed and patented in..1917 by Mr. Marius Latour.
1934 Pract. Wireless 1 Sept. 723/1 Reflex circuits are rarely used at the present time, although they were extremely popular between 1922 and 1924.
1961 J. M. Carroll Design Man. for Transistor Circuits viii. 154 Reflex circuits in which i–f and a–f gain are achieved in the same transistor stage have recently been incorporated into economy broadcast receivers.
1972 Oakland (Calif.) Tribune 18 June 12EN/3 (advt.) Walkie Talkies... Power boost reflex circuit.
2004 T. H. Lee Design CMOS Radio-requency Integrated Circuits (ed. 2) i. 1918 The reflex circuit deserves more detailed treatment than it currently receives.
b. Designating an oscillator, esp. a klystron, in which the same resonant cavity serves to modulate the electron beam and to produce an amplified microwave signal.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electronics > electronic devices or components > electron tubes > [adjective]
buncher1939
reflex1942
1942 J. G. Brainerd et al. Ultra-high-frequency Techniques x. 339 A reflex klystron oscillator, in which a single resonator acts both as the buncher and the catcher.
1989 J. A. C. Kinnear in D. H. Middleton Avionic Syst. ix. 215 The reflex klystron has found extensive use in radar receivers to generate the local oscillator signals required for superheterodyne operation.
2002 K. Seymour in J. C. Whitaker RF Transmission Syst. Handbk. 8-11 The reflex klystron can be used as a local oscillator, low-power FM transmitter, or test signal source.
II. Senses relating to a literal or physical turning back.† 7. That comes by way of return or reflection; (of sound) echoic. Also: secondary, indirect. Obsolete.
5. † b. Of the motion of an object: having an altered direction as a result of impact with a fixed object. Obsolete. rare.
a. Chiefly Botany and Zoology. Bent, folded, or turned back; recurved; having a recurved part or parts. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > types of curvature > [adjective] > backwards
recurve?a1425
recourbleda1492
recurvate1556
retorted1571
reflected1578
back-turneda1586
reflexed1597
recurved1598
reverteda1616
reflex1633
recurvous1713
retroflected1765
retrorsal1870
the world > space > direction > specific directions > [adjective] > having backward direction > turned backwards
retort?a1475
retorqued1590
retorted1605
reverting1631
reflex1633
retortive1787
1633 T. Johnson Gerard's Herball (new ed.) i. cvi. 199 Of the narrow leaved reflex Lillies... The floures are reflex, like those of the last chap. of a red or Vermilion colour.
1658 J. Rowland tr. T. Moffett Theater of Insects in Topsell's Hist. Four-footed Beasts (rev. ed.) 957 They couple sometime with their tails averse, sometimes reflex.
1752 J. Hill Gen. Nat. Hist. III. 64 A number of white, reflex hairs.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Leaf Reclinate or reflex Leaf, one which has its summit lower than its base.
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Iliad in Iliad & Odyssey I. iii. 418 At the disk, with blunted point Reflex, his ineffectual weapon stay'd.
1824 J. C. Loudon Green-house Compan. ii. 25 M. tridactyloides, reflex-flowered Mallow,..a shrub introduced from the Cape of Good Hope.
1937 S. F. Armstrong Brit. Grasses (ed. 3) 339 Setaria verticillata, Beauv. Reflex Bristle-grass.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impact > rebound > [adjective] > specifically of motion
reflex1654
1654 W. Charleton Physiologia Epicuro-Gassendo-Charltoniana Contents sig. A8/2 The genuine sense of Epicurus, in his distinction of the Reflex Motion of Atoms into ex Plaga, and ex Concussione.
1704 J. Norris Ess. Ideal World II. iii We say a motion is..reflex when there is a change of its determination upon the rencontre of another body which it cannot move or displace.
6.
a. Of light: reflected. Also figurative. Now rare (chiefly poetic).
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > reflection > [adjective] > reflected
reflexeda1425
repercussive1598
resultant1615
reflective1635
reflect1647
reflex1653
reflected1667
the world > matter > light > reflection > [adjective] > reflected > as in a mirror or water
reflected1594
float-glassed1632
reflex1653
subaqueous1798
mirrored1821
reverberated1896
1653 N. Hookes Amanda Ep. Ded. sig. A4 We can only see the Sunne in the water by some reflexe beames, it..dazles our weak eyes, if we gaze on it in its fiery chariot.
1661 T. Salusbury Math. Coll. & Transl. I. i. i. 62 The reflex light of uneven bodies, is more universal than that of the smooth.
1682 J. Flavell Righteous Man's Refuge in Pract. Treat. Fear (new ed.) 256 Our love to God is but the reflex beam of his love to us.
c1705 G. Berkeley Commonplace Bk. in Wks. (1871) IV. 465 No more than a deformed person ought to cavil to behold himself by the reflex light of a mirror.
1772 W. Mason Eng. Garden i. 23 Whose mighty mind,..mirror-like, Receiv'd, and to mankind with ray reflex The sov'reign Planter's primal work display'd.
1850 R. W. Emerson Montaigne in Representative Men iv. 180 The last class must needs have a reflex or parasite faith.
1880 A. C. Swinburne Stud. in Song 50 Rings, rages, flashes round what ravening pyre that makes time's face pale with its reflex light.
1881 J. H. Shorthouse John Inglesant (1882) II. 152 A reflex light, ethereal and wonderful, coming from the sky behind him.
1982 Leonardo 15 196/2 The earth diffuses the sun's reflex light more abundantly on the moon than does the moon upon the earth.
b. Designating a mirror or other reflective surface, esp. one angled so as to give a reflection of something which would otherwise be difficult or impossible for a viewer to see (also figurative). Now chiefly: spec. designating the mirror in a reflex camera (see sense 6e).
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > optical instruments > mirror > [adjective]
unfoiled1640
reflex1672
quicksilvered1754
mirrored1820
convex-concave1841
West Coast1957
1672 Minute 27 Nov. in T. Birch Hist. Royal Soc. (1757) III. 63 Mr. Hooke..being called upon concerning the large tool for grinding the reflex glass.
1672 Minute 4 Dec. in T. Birch Hist. Royal Soc. (1757) III. 69 Mr. Hooke..gave hopes..that he might be able to bring in the large reflex speculum at the next meeting.
1674 R. Hooke Animadversions Machina Cœlestis 33 To prevent the inconvenience of looking up or in any other uneasie posture by the help of a reflex Metal one may always look Horizontally.
1822 B. Prescot Inverted Scheme Copernicus I. i. 9 To the mind of man, as a reflex mirror of the world, he gave faculties of sense.
1881 P. Soboleski Poets & Poetry of Poland 337 The kingdom of God..which Krasiński contemplates with a reflex glass,..Lenartowicz sees with his own naked eye of intuition.
1908 Amer. Jrnl. Surg. 22 303/2 The same takes place..in the reflex mirror of the operating room. The table is so arranged that the largest field of operation is directly reflected upon the mirror.
1963 Pop. Sci. Dec. 133/2 The photocell is in back of the reflex mirror and internally coupled to the lens diaphragm.
2008 Leader-Post (Regina, Sask.) (Nexis) 26 June b10 In an SLR camera,..a 'reflex' mirror reflects the image to a prism, a device with a system of mirrors that reflect the image to the optical viewfinder.
c. Astronomy. Designating a zenith tube in which the light is reflected by a surface of mercury. Now historical.
ΚΠ
1851 London exhibited in 1851 642 A room adjoining the transit-circle room is fitted up for a zenith-tube of a new construction, invented by Mr. Airy, to be called the ‘reflex zenith-tube’; but this instrument is not yet completed.
1913 Science 3 Jan. 35/2 The series here considered consists of 13,852 determinations of latitude made with the zenith telescope, and 11,591 with the Wharton reflex zenith tube.
1949 Proc. Royal Soc. A. 198 146 The variation of latitude was first established in 1888... Determinations were first made at Greenwich with the Airy reflex zenith tube, but the observations were not entirely satisfactory.
d. Engineering. Designating a type of water gauge for a boiler, containing refractive glass which gives a clear image of the water level inside.
ΚΠ
1898 Marine Engineer June 101/1 (heading) Reflex water gauge... Construction based upon the laws of reflection and refraction by means of which the water appears black, while the steam shines with a silvery lustre.
1903 Locomotive Firemen's Mag. Nov. 692/2 There is another type coming into general use, called the Reflex water-glass.
1922 U.S. Naval Med. Bull. 16 958 The most desirable is the ‘flat’ or ‘reflex’ glass.
1967 R. G. Schmidt Pract. Man. Chem. Plant Equipm. 125 Reflex gauges..can withstand high pressures, are safe, and are easy to read.
2009 K. Rayaprolu Boilers for Power & Process viii. 372 In small boilers,..the drum water can be seen adequately with suitably illuminated reflex or bicolor WLIs [= water-level indicators].
e. Photography. Designating a camera in which the light from the lens is reflected by an angled mirror on to a horizontal focusing screen, providing an upright image that is the same as that which will be recorded (cf. reflex n. 7). Also: relating to or involving such a camera.Most reflex cameras use the same lens for both viewing the image and taking the photograph, with the addition (in most modern single-lens reflex cameras) of a pentaprism to direct the image to the viewfinder. In twin-lens reflex cameras separate matched lenses are used for the two functions.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > photography > camera > [adjective] > types of camera
pinhole1861
twin-lens1894
reflex1907
autofocus1917
miniature1921
autofocusing1922
wide-field1925
beam-splitting1935
point-and-shoot1964
subminiature1968
multi-mode1980
multiprogramme1990
1895 W. de W. Abney Instantaneous Photogr. p. v (advt.) The ‘Reflex’ Manufacturing Company..Patentees and Sole Manufacturers of the ‘Reflex’ Camera... The actual working lens also serves for the finder.]
1907 Anaconda (Montana) Standard 7 Apr. 13/4 I had brought from shore my 5×7 reflex camera.
1937 Life 1 Nov. 113/3 (advt.) The world's finest miniature reflex camera! Combines compactness with ‘big camera’ performance.
1949 H. Wilcox Six Moons in Sulawesi xi. 254 For an hour I had not used my camera because of the perspiration that splashed into the reflex viewfinder whenever I looked into it.
1969 Jrnl. Brit. Astron. Assoc. 79 378 For solar photography both telescopes use commercial 35-mm single-lens reflex cameras.
1990 PIC July 78/1 Twin lens reflex cameras don't have a waist-level viewfinder—they have a hat-level finder.
1998 S. Sontag et al. Blind Man's Bluff vi. 122 Mack hooked a Hasselblad single-lens reflex camera onto the periscope and held down the shutter.
f. Designating a photocopying process in which the original document is illuminated by light passing through a piece of sensitized paper placed in contact with it, a negative image being formed on the paper according to the amount of light reflected by the original; of or relating to such a process.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > representation > [adjective] > of or relating to copying apparatus > photocopying > types of
ferrogallic1860
reflex1939
multicopying1958
1939 Jrnl. Sci. Instruments 16 181 In photo-copying (e.g. photostat, reflex printing, blue and allied printing)..the high pressure mercury vapour lamps afford advantages.
1947 Jrnl. Royal Aeronaut. Soc. 51 318/1 The exposure is made through the paper with a yellow reflex screen.
1956 ‘C. Blackstock’ Dewey Death vii. 149 We then take a piece of..reflex contact document paper—the shiny side is the business end.
2007 K. M. Koppenhaver Forensic Document Exam. xxiv. 223 The reflex copying technique involves the direct transfer of material from the original to a copy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > causation > effect, result, or consequence > [adjective]
corollaryc1449
consequent1509
resulting?a1560
sequent1575
pursuant1593
following1594
ensuing1604
eventual1607
attendant1617
emergentc1619
resultant1639
resultative1645
consecutive1647
reflexed1653
redundant1654
reflex1654
consequential1655
resultive1655
attending1682
propter hoc1889
ensuant1897
sequential1899
pursuivant1941
1654 W. Charleton Physiologia Epicuro-Gassendo-Charltoniana iii. vi. 215 Both the Direct and Reflex sound invade the ear without any sensible difference in time; and yet the Reflex sound..is really the posterior.
1656 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. II. vi. 71 Echo is a reflex sound, when the air, gathered together and forced into a vessell, or some place which hindereth its diffusion and progresse, reverts as a base against a wall.
1660 H. More Let. 23 Oct. in Conway Lett. (1992) iii. 168 Direct action being ordinarily more strong then reflex, I can not forbeare..to adjure you [etc.].
1770 T. Percy tr. P. H. Mallet Northern Antiq. I. xiii. 393 Abstract terms and reflex ideas, which so much enervate our poetry.
1822 W. Hazlitt Table-talk (1869) 2nd Ser. xviii. 376 It is the immediate pursuit, not the remote or reflex consequence that gives wings to the passion.
1833 T. Chalmers On Power Wisdom & Goodness of God I. ii. 100 The secondary or reflex gratification which there is in the consciousness of benevolence.
1866 Duke of Argyll Reign of Law i. 12 That knowledge has a reflex influence on our knowledge of ourselves.
8. Geometry. Of an angle: greater than 180 degrees and less than 360 degrees. Cf. re-entrant adj. 1b.In quot. 1713 designating the angle of incidence of a reflected ray.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > number > geometry > angle > [adjective] > other
sidelong1654
semirect1656
subtended1759
supplementary1809
explementary1830
reflectional1848
reflex1869
multi-angled1908
1713 E. Wells Young Gentleman's Mechanicks 88 A reflex Angle is that, which is comprehended under the reflex Ray BE and the foresaid Perpendicular PB, viz. the angle EBP.]
1869 J. M. Wilson Elem. Geom. (ed. 2) 8 A reflex angle is one which is greater than a straight angle.
1912 C. Godfrey & A. W. Siddons Shorter Geom. 180 Ex. 1011. Open a book to form a reflex angle.
2001 K. Hughes Edexcel GCSE Modular Math. Examples & Pract., Found. Stage 1 vi. 45 The marked angle at C is a reflex angle.
Compounds
reflex action n. an action performed independently of the will, as an automatic response to a sensory stimulus; (more widely) an action that is automatic, unthinking, or instinctive; also in extended use and figurative.Marshall Hall, in the paper referred to in quot. 1837, uses only reflex function; cf. quot. 18331 at sense 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > biological processes > action of nervous system > [noun] > reflex action
reflex1833
reflection1836
reflex action1837
1837 Abstr. Papers Royal Soc. 1830–37 3 210 He [sc. M. Hall] distinguishes muscular actions into three kinds:..thirdly, those resulting from the reflex action above described.
a1846 B. R. Haydon Autobiogr. (1927) iii. xv. 278 He [sc. Wordsworth]..had a portion of the spirit of the mighty ones..but..did not possess the power of using that spirit otherwise than with reference to himself and so as to excite a reflex action only.
1917 R. Kipling Diversity of Creatures 159 Only the Lord can understand..How much is reflex action and How much is really sin.
1947 P. Larkin Girl in Winter i. iii. 23 She had written on an impulse—a reflex action from seeing their name in the papers, or rather a name she connected with them.
2007 M. W. Bromiley Equine Injury, Therapy & Rehabilit. (ed. 3) ii. 39 The body is endowed with a myriad of in-built safety or reflex actions.
reflex image n. now rare (chiefly poetic) an image displayed in, or as in, a mirror; a reflected image; also figurative.
ΚΠ
1654 J. Ellistone & J. Sparrow tr. J. Böhme Mysterium Magnum lxx. 532 An Expresse reflex Image of God.
a1797 W. Mason Religio Clerici ii. in Wks. (1811) I. 444 If Locke or Newton in a glass Survey'd the reflex image of his face.
1875 L. Morris Songs of Two Worlds 3rd Ser. 26 If he [sc. God] be not a reflex image, we may not know him at all.
1913 Washington Post 3 June 2/6 A congressman is but the reflex image of the people who sent him to Washington.
1990 Christian Sci. Monitor (Nexis) 13 Aug. 13 Like reflex images, the two tales of ‘The Chymical Wedding’ mirror each other.
Derivatives
ˈreflexness n. reflex character (of an action); reflex activity or action.
ΚΠ
1861 A. J. Cooley Dict. Eng. Lang. at Reflex Reflexness.
1896 Psychol. Rev. May 251 When both forms have reached a high degree of reflexness, the motor form is probably somewhat faster.
1930 W. Jennings Actor's Craft vii. 107 When the mind combats the sensation, a blinking and reflexness of the eye takes place, as the blushing one endeavours to meet the gaze of the beholder.
1983 Z. A. Melzak Bypasses xii. 231 If language is indeed a two-level affair.., then the possibility for reflexness may come from the nature of language itself.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
reflexv.
/ˈriːflɛks/, U.S. /ˈriˌflɛks/ a. transitive. To reflect (a ray of light, heat, etc.); = reflect v. 5a, 5c. Also intransitive: to be reflected (rare). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > reflection > [verb (transitive)]
rebounda1450
reflexc1536
reflect1555
return1557
repercuss1604
retort1609
refract1621
reverberate1638
to throw back1698
flash1716
to give back1831
glint1844
c1536 J. Bellenden tr. H. Boece Hist. & Chron. Scotl. (1821) II. 37 The goldin stremaris reflixand aganis the sonne.
a1586 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. xxxvii. 22 Ay moir brycht and burning is the beymis Off Phebus face, that fastast ar reflexit.
1594 R. Ashley tr. L. le Roy Interchangeable Course i. f. 4 The Sun beames reflexed doe heate.
1658 tr. G. della Porta Nat. Magick v. i. 162 You must put it into..some Oven that is made of purpose to reflex the heat of the fire to the best advantage.
b. transitive. To throw or cast (sunbeams) on a place or thing. Also intransitive: (of rays or beams) to alight on. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > shine [verb (transitive)]
shedc1200
showa1400
yet?c1400
throw1565
reflex1590
emit1626
fling1637
projectc1645
strike1697
slip1873
shine1889
1590 C. Marlowe Tamburlaine: 1st Pt. sig. C3 For neither rain can fall vpon the earth, Nor Sun reflexe his vertuous beames thereon.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) v. vi. 87 May neuer glorious Sunne reflex his beames Vpon the Countrey where you make abode. View more context for this quotation
1640 W. Mure Counter-buff 11 Causing her rayes on dunghills to reflex.
2.
a. transitive. To bend, turn, or fold back; to recurve. Cf. reflect v. 1. Usually in passive.In earliest use in Heraldry; later chiefly in Botany.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > physical aspects or shapes > physical arrangement or condition > [verb (transitive)] > turn inward or forward
reflexc1570
invaginate1835
antroverted1851
evaginate1877
introvert1883
society > communication > indication > insignia > heraldic devices collective > heraldic representations of creatures > [verb (transitive)] > bend or fold back
reflexc1570
c1570 Art of Music (BL Add. 4911) f. 5, in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) Gif virgule fro the lyne to the mid space be vprasit, hawand the heid on the rycht part reflexit, it is ane semisupiry callit ane curchet rest.
1572 J. Bossewell Wks. Armorie ii. f. 48 The fielde is Uerte, twoo Apes Circopetikes combattante, with tayles reflexed, Golde.
1610 J. Guillim Display of Heraldrie vi. vii. 286 A Chaine..passing betweene his fore legs, and reflexed ouer his backe.
1655 Ornitho-logie 4 This Eagle had its bill..reflexed back again into his mouth.
1760 J. Lee Introd. Bot. ii. xvii. 105 The Stigma bipartite and acute, with the lower Lacinia reflexed.
1771 E. Ledwich Antiquitates Sarisburienses 182 A monster lying at his feet, with his head reflext on his tail.
1861 P. Lankester Wild Flowers 125 The petals are reflexed, and turn over.
1875 C. Darwin Insectivorous Plants iv. 71 With the outer tentacles slightly reflexed.
1928 Garden & Home Builder Jan. 446/1 These blooms are trumpet-shaped, four to six inches long, and four inches wide at the trumpet mouth, which is strongly reflexed.
1953 H. Mellanby Animal Life in Fresh Water (ed. 5) xi. 238 There are no processes of the mantle reflexed over the shell.
1987 C. Lloyd Year at Great Dixter 53 (caption) I photographed them rather too early in the morning, before the dog's-tooth violet had reflexed its petals.
b. intransitive. Botany. Of a leaf, petal, etc.: to bend backwards.
ΚΠ
1895 Missouri Bot. Garden Ann. Rep. 101 As the fruits which they bear ripen..their leaves begin to reflex.
1932 Amer. Jrnl. Bot. 19 78 On April 15, however, the foliage leaves are rapidly expanding and reflexing.
2006 Daily Tel. (Nexis) 5 Aug. (Gardening) 3 As they go over, the petals reflex back, leaving a brilliantly coloured lollipop.
ΚΠ
1584 Phoenix in King James VI & I Ess. Prentise Art Poesie sig. I He tauld me then, How Titans garland thair Inflamde be heate, reflexing on her nest, The withered stra.
1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vi. 292 What with..the great heate reflexing vpon the sand, and from the sand to our faces, we were miserably turmoiled.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > reflection > [verb (transitive)] > an image
reflect1582
reflex1590
render1598
glassa1628
redouble1728
image1792
mirror1820
1590 C. Marlowe Tamburlaine: 1st Pt. iv. v. sig. D6v Now hang our bloody collours by Damascus. Reflexing hewes of blood vpon their heads.
1633 W. Forbes Panegyrick Chas. I sig. A2v When Ibers streames reflex'd thy glorious face.
1657 W. Rand tr. P. Gassendi Mirrour of Nobility v. 96 Contemplate the Image being reflexed by the Retina and restored.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > thought > continued thinking, reflection, contemplation > thinking about, consideration, deliberation > think about, consider [verb (intransitive)]
thinkOE
thinkOE
bethinka1200
umthinka1300
to have mind ofc1300
casta1340
studya1375
delivera1382
to chew the cudc1384
to take advisementa1393
stema1400
compassc1400
advisec1405
deliberc1405
to make it wisec1405
to take deliberationc1405
enter?a1413
riddlec1426
hovec1440
devise?c1450
to study by (also in) oneself?c1450
considerc1460
porec1500
regard1523
deliberate1543
to put on one's thinking or considering cap1546
contemplate1560
consult1565
perpend1568
vise1568
to consider of1569
weigh1573
ruminate1574
dascanc1579
to lay to (one's) heart1588
pondera1593
debate1594
reflect1596
comment1597
perponder1599
revolvea1600
rumine1605
consider on, upon1606
to think twice1623
reflex1631
spell1645
ponderatea1652
to turn about1725
to cast a thought, a reflection upon1736
to wake over1771
incubatea1847
mull1857
fink1888
1631 S. Jerome Arraignem. Whole Creature iv. 22 To drive this naile further to the very head: reflexing more fully on the Prodigals huskes.
1658 T. Meriton Love & War v. ii. sig. L2v To reflex on a gloomy shade Of fear and anger were discretion.
ΚΠ
1638 A. Henderson Answeres of some Brethren of Ministerie sig. Iv The naked naming, & bare rpoposall [sic] of certaine suppositions, such (as some are made by you) cannot but reflex upon Authoritie, & sound harsh in the eares of all his Majesties good Subjects.
1641 in J. I. Smith Sel. Justiciary Cases (1972) II. 429 Archibald, Erle of Argyle..upone whome the fals leyis and wicked calumneis..reflexis and trinches.
1646 in W. Stevenson Presbyterie Bk. Kirkcaldie (1900) 300 His expressiouns..doe reflex and cast aspersiouns upon the proceedings of the Presbytrie towards him.
7. intransitive. In reflexology and similar systems of therapy: (of a point on the body) to correspond to another specific part. Also transitive: (of a point on the body) to elicit a reaction in (another part) when stimulated.
ΚΠ
1978 A. Kaye & D. C. Matchan Reflexology for Good Health i. 14 Instead of saying ‘Pressing on this point causes a reflex response on (a specific) organ,’ we simply say, while identifying the place on the foot, ‘This reflexes to’.
1990 D. Stein All Women are Healers iv. 102 A point on the forehead reflexes the third eye, and one just above it is a meridian line to the crown chakra.
1990 D. Stein All Women are Healers v. 115 Primarily the thumb and big toe reflex to the head.
1998 B. Burger Esoteric Anat. iv. 64 The top of the foot reflexes to the thoracic cavity and back of the body.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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n.1508adj.1607
v.c1536