Origin: Latin suffix -ive
Reflective has 4 different meanings across 1 category:
deeply or seriously thoughtful
"Byron lives on not only in his poetry, but also in his creation of the `Byronic hero' - the persona of a brooding melancholy young man"
That reflects, or redirects back to the source.
"The reflective surface of the mirror sent my image straight back to me."
In plain English: Reflective means thinking deeply about your own actions and thoughts to learn from them.
"The reflective surface of the lake mirrored the clouds above."
Usage: Use reflective when describing surfaces that bounce light back toward its source, such as mirrors or shiny metal. Do not confuse this with reflexive, which describes an action performed by a subject on itself.
The word reflective comes from combining the verb reflect with the suffix -ive to describe something that reflects light or thoughts. It entered English as a direct formation based on its root meaning without undergoing significant shifts in definition over time.