refluxn.
/ˈriːflʌks/, U.S. /ˈriˌfləks/ 1. A flowing back, ebbing, refluence, return.Frequently in flux and reflux: see flux n. 4, and cf. to flow and reflow at reflow v. 1a, flowing and reflowing at reflowing n.
a. Of the sea, a river, water, or air. Also in figurative contexts (frequently poetic).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > flow or flowing > [noun] > reflux
refluxc1460
refluencea1500
back-swirl1577
refluxion1598
refluctuation1666
the world > matter > liquid > liquid flow > action or process of flowing > [noun] > back or backward
refluxc1460
refluencea1500
back-flow1577
refluxion1598
refluency1615
c1460 J. Lydgate Minor Poems (1934) ii. 735 (MED) Man hath of erthe slowthe and hevynesse, Flux and refflux by watir made unstable.
1594 T. Blundeville Exercises v. f. 270v Betwixt the Ile of Saint Laurence and the Iles Romeros, doe fall a most violent fluxe and refluxe of the Sea, East and West.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. 43 Hereunto addeth Aristotle..that no liuing creature dieth but in the reflux and ebbe of the sea.
1686 R. Plot Nat. Hist. Staffs. ii. 56 Which in some measure may cause the flux & reflux of the green Sea.
1719 D. Defoe Life Robinson Crusoe 255 The great Draft and Reflux of the mighty River.
1762 Ann. Reg. 1761 i. 95 Fluxes and refluxes of the sea..continued till six o'clock next morning.
1804 C. B. Brown tr. C. F. de Volney View Soil & Climate U.S.A. 67 I cannot determine how far eastward the Delaware then extended the reflux of its waters.
1830 C. Lyell Princ. Geol. I. 117 The heat and cold which surround the globe are in a state of constant and universal flux and reflux.
1869 E. A. Parkes Man. Pract. Hygiene (ed. 3) 110 Ill-contrived sewers permitting a large reflux of air into the houses.
1923 Internat. Jrnl. Ethics 34 86 One finds Adelhard of Bath in the twelfth century..spending a whole summer studying the flux and reflux of the tides on the west coast of England.
1995 Computers & Humanities 29 330/2 The constant flux and reflux of the sea..hindering the ice from gathering to any thickness.
b. In extended use.
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the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > backward movement > [noun] > return towards point of departure > flowing back
refluencea1592
refluency1615
reflux1632
ebbing1660
ebb1713
1632 J. Hayward tr. G. F. Biondi Eromena 129 The refluxes [It. reflussi] of so unjust a fortune in a Princesse of so great merit.
1670 R. Coke Disc. Trade 69 After all this flux and re-flux of vexation and charge to the certain undoing of one or both parties.
1710 Ld. Shaftesbury Soliloquy 114 The Alterations which happen in Manners, and the Flux and Re-flux of Politeness, Wit, and Art.
1749 W. Burton tr. B. Le Bovier de Fontanelle Eloge Professor Boerhaave 26 Each of his three professorships occasion'd an annual flux and reflux of students.
1800 P. Colquhoun Treat. Commerce & Police R. Thames Introd. 25 The flux and reflux of Commercial Property..on the Thames.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 189 A violent and rapid reflux of public feeling.
1892 W. Larminie Fand & Other Poems 19 Out of the flux and reflux of the world Slowly man's soul doth gather to itself.
1912 Mind 21 61 Mysticism, as worship, is only a moment of reflux in the movement of living.
1987 ELH 54 107 The flux and reflux of human consciousness.
2008 R. Sokolowski Phenomenology of Human Person ii. viii. 139 The reflux of art into life may submerge life for a while, until the real thing's insistence finally breaks through.
2.
a. Medicine. Flow of a fluid through a tubular structure, valve, or opening of the body in a direction opposite to that regarded as normal. In early use also: †flow of blood back to the heart (obsolete). Frequently attributive.See also reflux oesophagitis ( Compounds 2).
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the world > life > the body > vascular system > circulation > [noun] > types of circulation
recoursea1545
refluencea1592
refluxion1598
refluency1615
reflux1630
fluid vein1817
microcirculation1955
shunting1961
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of internal organs > digestive disorders > [noun] > reflux or regurgitation
upbraiding1541
regurgitation1601
reflux1630
water brash1757
pyrosis1772
rumination1772
water-brash1811
merycism1857
1630 T. Johnson tr. A. Paré Treat. Plague xi. 31 She was some-what troubled with a difficultie of making Water, and I thinke it was, because the Bladder was inflamed by the reflux of the matter.
1653 W. Harvey Anat. Exercitations (1673) i. xiii. 81 [The blood] comes..into the ear of the heart in so great abundance, with so great flux, and reflux [etc.].
1707 J. Floyer Physician's Pulse-watch 15 The Circulation of our Blood, whose reflux to the Heart is promoted by..Respiration.
1754 tr. J. Astruc Treat. Venereal Dis. (new ed.) I. iii. i. 262 If a virulent running be stopped, then the Blood necessarily partakes of the Infection by the reflux of the morbid Matter, and by this Means a Pox is the Consequence.
1799 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 2 371 This foramen in the embryo..is closed by a valve which prevents the reflux of the blood.
1827 J. Forbes tr. R. T. H. Laennec Treat. Dis. Chest (ed. 2) ii. i. v. 556 The reflux of blood into the jugular veins from coughing or a prolonged expiration.
1840 Lancet 31 Oct. 183/2 This pouch prevents the reflux of the secretion towards the bladder during the action of the muscle.
1899 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. VI. 40 The intra-ventricular pressure becomes lowered from reflux through the valve.
1951 M. Campbell Clin. Pediatric Urol. i. 67 Vesico-ureteral reflux also results from obstructions of the lower urinary tract.
1993 Brit. Jrnl. Surg. 80 725/2 The assessment of reflux in a vein was performed twice in each case to increase the reliability of the diagnosis.
2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 30 June d7/1 The main culprit is bile reflux, a back-up of digestive fluid that is supposed to remain in the small intestine.
b. spec. Flow of gastric fluid into the oesophagus (more fully gastric reflux); symptoms caused by this; = acid reflux n. at acid adj. and n. Compounds 1c. Also: the return of gastric contents into the mouth, esp. in an infant after feeding; regurgitation, posseting.
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1920 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 5 June 761/1 At the second examination there was no gastric reflux to be seen.
1983 F. M. Henretig in G. R. Fleisher & S. Ludwig Textbk. Pediatric Emergency Med. xli. 280/1 The degree of reflux may be increased by improper feeding techniques such as failure to burp the baby, using nipples with holes that are too small, or bottle propping.
1999 Consumer Rep. 12/3 To spot reflux, watch for a burning sensation under the breastbone as well as symptoms that worsen after a meal, at night, or when you lie down.
2008 Wall St. Jrnl. 22 July d1/1 Most babies have reflux—spitting up some liquid.
3. Chemistry. The condition, process, or action of refluxing; an instance of this. Also (concrete): the condensed vapour resulting from this process. Frequently in adverbial phrases, as under (also at) reflux: in refluxing conditions.
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the world > matter > chemistry > equipment or apparatus > [noun] > general vessels > fitted with a reflux condenser
under (also at) reflux1886
the world > matter > chemistry > chemical reactions or processes > [noun] > chemical reactions or processes (named) > reflux
refluxing?1771
reflux1886
1886 Jrnl. Amer. Chem. Soc. 8 74 After a few minutes boiling with reflux, the mixture is thrown into cold water.
1897 Jrnl. Chem. Soc. 71 1036 The operation is carried out under reflux.
1923 H. M. Bunbury Destructive Distillation of Wood xii. 213 It is sometimes necessary to make a total reflux, i.e. to return all the condensed vapours to the column.
1936 W. L. Nelson Petroleum Refinery Engin. xv. 278 The reflux flows down the column but it changes composition from plate to plate so that all of the material that is originally put into the top of the column as reflux is vaporized and returns to the product storage tank.
1968 Inorg. Syntheses 11 20 The mixture is stirred at reflux for 6 hours.
1992 Energy & Fuels 6 86/1 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene required a 48-h reflux to completely oxidize all methyl groups.
1999 J. Ballinger Chem. Operator's Portable Handbk. xvii. 13 Reflux is simply vapor that has been recondensed into liquid and allowed to reenter the distillation tower.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
reflux current n.
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1830 Edinb. Med. & Surg. Jrnl. 33 271 The concussion of this reflux current would be mitigated..by the fine valvular membrane described above.
1871 Economist 11 Mar. (Suppl.) 2/1 Last year,..a reflux from the East to Europe has actually been witnessed in mercantile calculations of exchange. It is not unlikely that this reflux current will continue.
1961 Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 64 188 Evaporite deposition resulted from restriction of influx and reflux currents but without complete isolation of a body of water.
reflux theory n.
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1885 London Med. Rec. 16 Feb. 73/1 The reflux theory [of hæmatosalpinx] appears, according to Dr. Alberts, to be completely refuted.
1946 Lancet 28 Sept. 473/2 The reflux theory does not seem very feasible; and this experiment appears to show that normal urine is not an irritant in the epididymis.
2004 Amer. Jrnl. Surg. 187 792/2 The pancreatic juice reflux theory fails to account for choledochal cysts in patients without an anomalous pancreaticobiliary duct junction.
reflux tide n.
ΚΠ
1822 Missionary Reg. May 188/2 A sort of reflux tide is poured back on ourselves, and we are awakened to gratitude, consolation, and assurance.
1852 J. Wiggins Pract. Embanking Lands 51 This is to sustain any current that may take place at the reflux tide.
1906 Ann. Amer. Acad. Polit. & Social Sci. 27 83 Should European countries offer..better conditions of living, there would be a reflux tide at once and the gate of Ellis Island would swing outward.
C2.
reflux apparatus n. Chemistry an apparatus consisting of or containing a reflux condenser.
ΚΠ
1886 Jrnl. Amer. Chem. Soc. 8 39 The mixture is boiled for half and hour in a reflux apparatus.
1906 H. J. H. Fenton Notes Qualitative Anal. (new ed.) 112 After the boiling has been continued for some time (best in a reflux apparatus) the product is distilled.
1990 Woodworker July 695/1 I was..told it [sc. Superglue] was discovered by a chemist who found, whilst distilling new compounds, that his reflux apparatus was stuck together and resisted all attempts to part.
reflux catheter n. Surgery (now rare or disused) a catheter having two tubes or channels, allowing liquid to pass out through one and return through the other.
ΚΠ
1870 Amer. Med. Assoc. Trans. 21 376 Without the aid of a proper reflux catheter, douching and cleansing the uterine cavity with any degree of safety is almost out of the question.
a1884 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Suppl. 747/2 Reflux Catheter, a double-current catheter which allows the liquid to pass by one duct and return by another.
1902 Lancet 6 Sept. 692/1 The urethra may be irrigated..by means of Skene's reflux catheter or a soft rubber catheter.
reflux condenser n. Chemistry a condenser mounted or designed so that condensed vapour runs back into the stock of boiling liquid.
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the world > matter > chemistry > equipment or apparatus > [noun] > miscellaneous apparatus
bain1477
speculum1650
filtering paper1651
wheel-fire1662
filter paper1670
sun furnace1763
respirator1789
candle-ball1794
rectifier1822
candle-bomb1823
filter1823
oxyhydrogen blowpipe1823
shade1837
graduator1839
pipette1839
thistle funnel1849
pressure tube1852
ozonizer1858
dialyser1861
Liebig condenser1861
Sprengel pump1866
Sprengel tube1866
water softener1867
mercury pump1869
Bunsen burner1870
dialysator1877
test-mixer1877
tube-condenser1877
Kipp1879
reflux condenser1880
policeman1888
converter1889
pressure boiler1891
spot plate1896
hydrogen electrode1898
sampler1902
reactor1903
fume-chamber1905
Permutit1910
microburner1911
salt bridge1915
precipitator1919
Raschig ring1920
microneedle1921
titrator1928
laboratory coatc1936
spray tower1937
precipitron1938
ion exchanger1941
potentiostat1942
chemostat1950
Knudsen pipette1951
pH-stat1956
cryopump1958
1880 Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. 1878–80 18 347 A mixture..contained in a flask connected with a reflux condenser.
1962 J. T. Marsh Self-smoothing Fabrics xxii. 368 The flask is then cooled and the reflux condenser washed down with about 50 cc of distilled water.
1992 Organometallics 11 1350/1 A solution of KHFe(CO)4..is heated..to reflux in a Schlenk flask equipped with a reflux condenser.
reflux oesophagitis n. (also reflux esophagitis) Medicine oesophagitis caused by the regurgitation of gastric fluid into the oesophagus.
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the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of internal organs > disorders of throat > [noun] > disorders of fauces or oesophagus
oesophagitis1833
isthmitis1855
faucitis1875
reflux oesophagitis1950
1950 N. R. Barrett in Brit. Jrnl. Surg. 38 176/1 I shall first summarize what is known about ‘reflux œsophagitis’, which I consider to be the best name for the lesion.
1980 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 29 Mar. (Advt. facing p. 946) ‘Tagamet’..has revolutionised the treatment of disorders such as peptic ulcer and reflux oesophagitis, where acid plays a part.
1999 Mail on Sunday 26 Sept. (You section) 97/2 For a leaflet on reflux oesophagitis (often caused by hiatus hernia), send an sae to The Digestive Disorders Foundation.
reflux trap n. a container to collect vapour or liquid produced during reflux.
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the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > sanitation > provision of sewers > [noun] > sewer > trap
stink-trap1782
gas trap1818
stench-trap1833
trap1833
smell-trap1851
bottle trap1876
trapping1890
reflux trap1892
1892 Daily News 30 Dec. 3/4 As far as practical, the up current of air (when existing) is prevented by reflux traps.
1966 Proc. Royal Soc. A. 292 491 Valves (8) and (10) are closed and the sample distilled via valve (9) to the intermediate receiver (17) and thence..finally transferred to the discharge cells via the reflux trap.
2001 Jrnl. Biosci. & Bioengin. 92 19/1 The water generated in ester synthesis was removed using a reflux trap packed with molecular sieves.
reflux valve n. a valve, esp. one in a water pipe, which allows fluid to flow in one direction only and which automatically closes when flow ceases or reverses; also called check valve.
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society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > control(s) > [noun] > valve > others
washer1596
turncock1702
air cock1709
Jack-in-the-box1728
runner1754
stop-valve1829
three-way cock1838
ball valve1839
relief valve1846
poppet valve1851
plunger valve1854
pot-lid1856
reflux valve1857
screw-down1864
mica valve1880
tide flap1884
tube-valve1884
swing-tap1892
relay valve1894
Schrader1895
pilot valve1900
mixer valve1904
spool valve1908
spill valve1922
safety valving1930
three-way1939
1857 Canada Directory 1857–8 1213 (advt.) Stop-cocks, reflux-valves, &c.
1893 J. H. T. Turner & A. W. Brightmore Princ. Waterworks Engin. vi. 375 ‘Re-flux’ valves are introduced at such points as the inlets to reservoirs or towards the ‘delivery’ sides of deep depressions in the pipe-line.
1962 L. B. Escritt Pumping Station Equipm. & Design vii. 72 If a reflux valve sticks open..water will rush backwards from the rising main.
2001 P. Pitman External Works, Roads & Drainage v. 119 Reflux valves reduce back flow and water hammer.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
refluxv.
/ˈriːflʌks/, U.S. /ˈriˌfləks/ 1.
a. transitive. To cause to flow back; (also) to recycle.
ΚΠ
1652 Mercurius Pragmaticus No. 6. 44 A man need never ride into the West to be bathed, for his fears and hopes flux him and reflux him like the tydes of the Sea.
1765 W. Nichelson Sundry Remarks & Observ. Voy. East-Indies Introd. p. viii Its stream being refluxed, and still retaining its former force and speed, must gradually decline the motion of the incumbent air.
1862 Lancet 19 July 65/1 The risk is incurred of the products of combustion being refluxed into the apartment, and being inhaled.
1959 Amer. Jrnl. Med. 27 491/1 There is an increase in bronchial arterial blood flow... This refluxes blood at systemic pressure back into the low pressure pulmonary arterial system.
1970 Ann. Rev. Ecol. & Systematics 1 181 In rumen symbiosis, it is the ruminant that conserves and refluxes essential elements.
1999 Jrnl. Polit. Econ. 107 930 Early proponents of free banking have argued that a note exchange may reflux private notes at a speed that is sufficient to prevent overissue.
b. intransitive. To flow back. Now usually Medicine: (of blood, gastric fluid, urine, etc.) to flow backwards, esp. through a valve or sphincter.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of internal organs > [noun] > other disorders
oppletion1615
lesion1640
reflux1662
stress1682
prosphysis1684
injection1806
collapse1808
exstrophy1835
extroversion1835
fatigue1872
splanchnomegaly1910
malalignment1922
arrest1939
1662 in H. Marten Familiar Lett. sig. A3 v But you thought otherwise, and return'd the streames to the Sea, that is, your ebb of expences reflux'd to the Sins and Venerie from whence their Flood was.
1692 J. Dunton Young-students-libr. 83/2 In their time it Fluxt and Refluxt regularly seven times a day.
1745 Philos. Trans. 1744–5 (Royal Soc.) 43 302 Neither the Tumour, nor the Inflammation of it, are permanent; but appearing and disappearing, as the sanious Matter is thrown out of the Blood, or refluxes back into it.
1749 J. Swift in Poems on Several Occasions 4 Or would you see his Spirits sink, Refluxing downwards, in a Stink?
1831 J. Porter Sc. Chiefs (rev. ed.) I. xlii. 367 A few minutes longer, and the stanched blood refluxing to the chieftain's heart, he too opened his eyes.
1983 Amer. Jrnl. Nursing 83 1684 (caption) The incompetent valve allows blood to reflux into [the] left atrium during ventricular systole.
1995 GQ Jan. 135/2 As the sphincter at the base of the gullet relaxes to let air escape, acidic secretions of the stomach can simultaneously reflux back upwards.
2001 J. Le Fanu They don't know what's Wrong vii. 113 The sore throat could be acid refluxing from the stomach.
2. Chemistry.
a. transitive. To boil (a liquid) in circumstances such that the vapour returns to the stock of liquid after condensing (typically by using a reflux condenser). Also intransitive.
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the world > matter > chemistry > chemical reactions or processes > subject to chemical reactions or processes [verb (transitive)] > reflux
reflux1909
1909 C. Glaser U.S. Patent 923,967 1/2 The production of camphene from bornyl-chlorid by the distillation of that substance at a temperature between 180° and 210° C. and for a time refluxing the distillate.
1926 Lowy & Baldwin Lab. Bk. Elem. Org. Chem. 45 After all the alcohol or acetone has been added, reflux the mixture on a water bath for half an hour.
1958 A. I. Vogel Elem. Pract. Org. Chem. xvii. 420 Place 0·5 g. of the dry acid..into the flask, add 2·0–2·5 ml. of redistilled thionyl chloride and reflux gently for 30 minutes.
1999 Copeia No. 4. 907/1 A Soxhlet extractor refluxes and washes samples repeatedly.
b. intransitive. Of a liquid: to boil in such circumstances that the vapour returns to the stock of liquid after condensing.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > chemistry > chemical reactions or processes > undergo chemical reactions or processes [verb (intransitive)] > undergo chemical reactions or processes (named) > undergo reflux
reflux1916
1916 Jrnl. Amer. Chem. Soc. 38 2547 The mixture refluxes only slightly at the end due to the conservation [? read conversion] of benzene into bromobenzene.
1938 A. A. Morton Lab. Technique in Org. Chem. iv. 83 The stopcock is closed, and the liquid allowed to reflux until the thermometer records the lowest temperature possible.
2000 Stud. Conservation 45 109/1 The solvent was allowed to reflux for 2.5 hours.
Derivatives
ˈrefluxed adj.
ΚΠ
1765 W. Nichelson Sundry Remarks & Observ. Voy. East-Indies Introd. p. xi [The current] still pursued its refluxed direction.
1852 H. Stansbury Explor. & Surv. Valley Great Salt Lake 186 A gentle breeze came up from the south, bringing back with it the refluxed waters, which gradually began to deepen around us.
1950 Science 4 Aug. 148/2 In this manner, the hazards from injecting refluxed blood into successive subjects are eliminated.
2006 Jrnl. Gastrointestinal Surg. 10 787 The components of refluxed gastric juice are known to cause mucosal injury.
ˈrefluxing n. and adj.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > chemistry > chemical reactions or processes > [noun] > chemical reactions or processes (named) > reflux
refluxing?1771
reflux1886
the world > matter > chemistry > chemical reactions or processes > [adjective] > of or relating to named chemical reactions or processes > of or relating to refluxing
refluxing?1771
?1771 F. B. Lee tr. S. A. D. Tissot Ess. Disorders People of Fashion viii. 77 The fever, and the new lodgement of a part of the refluxing humours carried to different parts, cause the most alarming symptoms.
1772 R. Griffith Something New I. 158 The sea must necessarily need a course of fluxing and refluxing, in order to preserve its health.
1840 J. Orange Hist. & Antiq. Nottingham I. ii. iv. 18 The perpetually choking up of the mouth of that river, by the gravel taken down by each refluxing tide, has already rendered it impossible for more than two vessels to enter the Mersey abreast.
1915 Science 31 Dec. 955/2 This heating requires about an hour and is followed by three hours refluxing.
1972 Amer. Jrnl. Nursing 72 1881/3 Fail-safe check valve on a closed-wound suction unit..prevents refluxing of fluids back to the wound.
1975 L. F. Fieser & M. A. Fieser Reagents for Org. Synthesis V. 381 Raney nickel which had been deactivated by treatment with refluxing ethanol.
2007 J. B. Ledgard Preparatory Man. Explosives (ed. 3) viii. 198 After 8 hours of refluxing, quickly add 300 grams of paraformaldehyde.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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