retroflex

• Se dit d'un son articulé avec la pointe de la langue recourbée vers l'arrière contre le palais dur, ou d'une structure anatomique incurvée vers l'arrière.

Describes a sound produced with the tip of the tongue curled back against the hard palate, or an anatomical structure bent backward.

1. Bent or curved backwardC2formal

   Describing something that is bent, turned, or curved in a backward direction.

   rétrofléchi (sens anatomique/physique)

   • The retroflex shape of the plant's leaves helps it capture sunlight.
   • In anatomy, a retroflex organ is one that curves backward.
   • The artist's sculpture had a retroflex form, with its top bending away from the viewer.

   Synonymesrecurvedreflexedretrorse

2. Linguistic articulationC2formal

   Pronounced with the tip of the tongue curled back toward the hard palate, a common sound in many languages.

   rétroflexe

   • The retroflex consonants in Hindi are distinct from dental sounds.
   • Linguists study how retroflex sounds are produced in the vocal tract.
   • The English 'r' is sometimes considered a retroflex approximant.

   Synonymescacuminalcerebral

• Verbe signifiant plier, tourner ou courber vers l'arrière, souvent utilisé dans un contexte anatomique ou linguistique.

A verb meaning to bend, turn, or curve backward, often used in anatomical or linguistic contexts.

1. Bend or turn backwardC2formal

   To bend, curve, or turn something backward.

   Recourber vers l'arrière

   • The surgeon carefully retroflexed the instrument to access the area.
   • In yoga, she learned to retroflex her spine gently.
   • The plant's stem retroflexed towards the sunlight.

   Synonymesrecurve

   Antonymesextendforwardstraightenunbend

2. Articulate with tongue curled backC2formal

   To pronounce a consonant by curling the tip of the tongue back against the hard palate.

   Articuler en rétroflexe

   • In some languages, speakers retroflex the 't' sound.
   • Linguists study how to retroflex consonants in phonetics.
   • He learned to retroflex the 'r' in his native dialect.