deflected; deflecting; deflects
: to turn (something) aside especially from a straight course or fixed direction
armor that deflects bullets
deflecting attention from the troubled economy
deflect a question
: to turn aside : deviate
the shot deflected off the goalie's shoulder pad
Examples of deflect in a Sentence
armor that can deflect bullets
The goalie deflected the ball with his hands.
The ball deflected off the goalie's shoulder.
They are trying to deflect attention from the troubled economy.
The blame was deflected from the chairman.
Recent Examples on the Web
On the next Browns possession, Joe Flacco’s pass to Jerry Jeudy was deflected into the air by the receiver into the hands of Jordan Battle.
—
Mike Straw, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Tart remained in the game and came up with two big plays, deflecting a pair of passes by Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes — including one on a two-point conversion attempt that would have tied the game 20-20.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Sep. 2025
The real hoax is that the Democrats are now using these victims to deflect from their party's spectacular downfall.
—Nick Mordowanec, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Thomas Saggese sliced San Francisco’s lead to one run with an RBI single, then Jordan Walker erased it entirely with a walk-off, two-run double that deflected off third baseman Matt Chapman’s glove.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deflect
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Mike Straw, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Tart remained in the game and came up with two big plays, deflecting a pair of passes by Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes — including one on a two-point conversion attempt that would have tied the game 20-20.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Sep. 2025
The real hoax is that the Democrats are now using these victims to deflect from their party's spectacular downfall.
—Nick Mordowanec, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Thomas Saggese sliced San Francisco’s lead to one run with an RBI single, then Jordan Walker erased it entirely with a walk-off, two-run double that deflected off third baseman Matt Chapman’s glove.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deflect
Cite this Entry
“Deflect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deflect. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
deflect
verb
de·flect
di-ˈflekt 
: to turn or cause to turn aside (as from a course, direction, or position)
a bullet deflected by striking a wall
deflection
noun
-ˈflek-shən
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