Inflect

Pronunciation: /ɪnˈflɛkt/

Definitions of inflect

verb to change or vary the form of (a word) to express different grammatical categories such as tense, mood, voice, aspect, person, number, and gender

Example Sentences

A1 She inflects her voice when she is excited.

A2 The verb 'to be' inflects in different tenses.

B1 In Spanish, verbs inflect based on the subject pronoun.

B2 Linguists study how different languages inflect their nouns and verbs.

C1 The actor's ability to inflect emotions in his performance is truly remarkable.

C2 A skilled singer knows how to inflect their voice to convey different emotions to the audience.

Examples of inflect in a Sentence

formal The verb 'to be' inflects for tense, aspect, mood, and person.

informal I noticed how her voice inflects when she gets excited.

slang His tone inflects when he's lying.

figurative The new information caused her emotions to inflect in unexpected ways.

Grammatical Forms of inflect

• past tense: inflected
• plural: inflects
• comparative: more inflect
• superlative: most inflect
• present tense: inflect
• future tense: will inflect
• perfect tense: have inflected
• continuous tense: is inflecting
• singular: inflect
• positive degree: inflect
• infinitive: inflect
• gerund: inflecting
• participle: inflected

Origin and Evolution of inflect

First Known Use: 1550 year

Language of Origin: Latin

Story behind the word: The word 'inflect' originated from the Latin word 'inflectere', which means to bend or curve.

Evolution of the word: Originally used in the context of grammar to describe the variation of a word's form to express different grammatical categories, the term 'inflect' has evolved to also encompass the idea of changing or modifying something in a flexible or adaptable manner.