Reflex
/ˈriː.flɛks/noun
A response or movement that happens automatically without conscious thought.
Did you know?Reflex entered English through Latin reflexus, the past participle of reflectere, and originally described something physically bent back before it became the language of automatic reaction.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰleg-
“to bend, curve, or fold”
Latin
Latin
reflectere
“to bend back, turn back”
Latin
Latin
reflexus
“bent back; turned backward”
16th Century
English
reflex
“turned back; reflected”
Modern English
English
reflex
“an automatic bodily response or reaction”