Reflective

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ɹɪˈflɛktɪv/

Definitions

1. Characterized by careful thought and consideration, or capable of throwing back light, heat, or sound from a surface
2. Involving deep thought and contemplation, as well as the property of returning light, heat, or sound from a surface
3. Pertaining to introspection and consideration, while also describing a surface that can reflect light, sound, or heat

Etymology: Reflective, in its sense of "showing careful thought," grows out of a physical image: light bouncing back off a surface. The root is the Latin verb "reflectere," meaning "to bend back," built from "re-" (back) and "flectere" (to bend). From that root came the English verb "reflect," which first described throwing light or heat back, and only later the mind turning back over its own thoughts. The adjective is simply "reflect" plus the suffix "-ive," which turns a verb into a quality, so the word means "tending to reflect." The suffix arrived through Old French "-if" from Latin "-īvus," and English eventually settled on the spelling "-ive." Its earliest English sense was the physical one, as in a reflective surface, and the mental sense developed from there, so the thinking person is pictured as a mirror turning inward.

Synonyms: thoughtful, pensive, meditative, contemplative

Antonyms: unreflective, thoughtless