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reflexive

 - 4 dictionary results

re⋅flex⋅ive

[ri-flek-siv]
–adjective
1. Grammar.
a. (of a verb) taking a subject and object with identical referents, as shave in I shave myself.
b. (of a pronoun) used as an object to refer to the subject of a verb, as myself in I shave myself.
2. reflex; responsive.
3. able to reflect; reflective.
4. Mathematics.
a. noting a relation in which each element is in relation to itself, as the relation “less than or equal to.” Compare antireflexive.
b. (of a vector space) having the property that the dual space of the dual space of the given vector space equals the given vector space.
–noun
5. Grammar. a reflexive verb or pronoun.

Origin:
1580–90; < ML reflexīvus turned back, reflected. See reflex, -ive


re⋅flex⋅ive⋅ly, adverb
re⋅flex⋅ive⋅ness, re⋅flex⋅iv⋅i⋅ty [ree-flek-siv-i-tee] , noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To reflexive
re·flex·ive   (rĭ-flěk'sĭv)   
adj.  
  1. Directed back on itself.

  2. Grammar

    1. Of, relating to, or being a verb having an identical subject and direct object, as dressed in the sentence She dressed herself.

    2. Of, relating to, or being the pronoun used as the direct object of a reflexive verb, as herself in She dressed herself.

  3. Of or relating to a reflex.

  4. Elicited automatically; spontaneous: "a bid for . . . reflexive left-wing approval" (Marshall Delaney).

n.   Grammar
A reflexive verb or pronoun. See Usage Note at myself.
re·flex'ive·ly adv., re·flex'ive·ness, re'flex·iv'i·ty (rē'flěk-sĭv'ĭ-tē) n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: re·flex·ive
Pronunciation: ri-'flek-siv
Function: adjective
: characterized by habitual and unthinking behavior; also : relating to or consisting of a reflex
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Computing Dictionary

reflexive theory
A relation R is reflexive if, for all x, x R x.
Equivalence relations, pre-orders, partial orders and total orders are all reflexive.
(1999-01-28)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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