an automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus
"When his hand touched the hot stove, he immediately pulled it away due to a reflex."
An automatic response to a simple stimulus which does not require mental processing.
"When I touched the hot stove, my hand pulled away instantly due to a reflex that didn't give my brain time to think."
In plain English: A reflex is an automatic reaction your body makes without you thinking about it first, like pulling your hand away from something hot immediately.
"She pulled her hand back instantly from the hot stove thanks to her reflex."
Usage: Use "reflex" as an adjective before the noun it modifies (e.g., reflex action), but place it after linking verbs like "is" when describing a state. Avoid confusing this with "reflect," which implies conscious thought rather than an automatic response.
To bend, turn back or reflect.
"When the flashlight beam hit the mirror at a sharp angle, it created a bright reflex that blinded everyone in the room."
In plain English: To reflex means to quickly move your body away from something that hurts you without thinking about it first.
"My knee jerked up when he tapped my tendon, showing a quick reflex to touch."
Bent, turned back or reflected.
"The old man looked at his reflex in the mirror and frowned at his disheveled appearance."
In plain English: Reflex describes something that happens automatically without you thinking about it first.
"It was just a reflex action that knocked over his coffee cup."
The word comes from the Late Latin reflexus, which means "bent back." It traveled into English through the related concept of a reflection, eventually taking on its modern photographic sense.