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inflection
[ in-flek-shuhn ]
noun
- modulation of the voice; change in pitch or tone of voice.
- 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.
- the paradigm of a word.
- a single pattern of formation of a paradigm:
noun inflection; verb inflection.
- 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.
- the affix added to produce this change, as the -s in dogs or the -ed in played.
- the systematic description of such processes in a given language, as in serves from serve, sings from sing, and harder from hard ( derivation ).
- a bend or angle.
- Mathematics. a change of curvature from convex to concave or vice versa.
inflection
/ ɪnˈflɛkʃən /
noun
- modulation of the voice
- 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
- an angle or bend
- the act of inflecting or the state of being inflected
- maths a change in curvature from concave to convex or vice versa See also point of inflection
inflection
- 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 .
Derived Forms
- inˈflectional, adjective
- inˈflectionally, adverb
- inˈflectionless, adjective
Other Words From
- in·flection·less adjective
- prein·flection noun
Word History and Origins
Origin of inflection1
Example Sentences
“The population has grown significantly, and we’re really at an inflection point where the number of animals that are reproducing on the landscape is significant,” Hunnicutt said.
In an election night speech to donors and campaign volunteers at a music venue in the Mission, Lurie drew comparisons to that catastrophe and the “inflection point” San Francisco faces today.
It will be 10,000 years before the story reaches that inflection point with, I’m sure, many head-scratching twists and turns along that road that this series never has to deal with.
This autumn marks an inflection point for Olympic organizers as they transition from planning to the nuts-and-bolts of getting things done.
In an interview after he rallied for Democratic congressional candidates two days before the election, Newsom didn’t want to discuss the reality of the election as a critical inflection point in his own political future.
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