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
The pair then combined down the right wing in stoppage time and created a chance for Kudus but his shot was deflected for a corner.
—
Jay Harris, New York Times, 21 Sep. 2025
Multiple deflected shots pinged around to Bia Zaneratto; her shot was blocked in front of the goal, but Chawinga was there to dunk the header into an empty net in the 74th minute.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2025
Pablo López raced off the mound, chasing after a ball that deflected off of his foot.
—Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 20 Sep. 2025
But, when asked about the book’s relatively tepid judgments of the President and his party, Manchin has deflected or demurred.
—Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deflect
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Jay Harris, New York Times, 21 Sep. 2025
Multiple deflected shots pinged around to Bia Zaneratto; her shot was blocked in front of the goal, but Chawinga was there to dunk the header into an empty net in the 74th minute.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2025
Pablo López raced off the mound, chasing after a ball that deflected off of his foot.
—Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 20 Sep. 2025
But, when asked about the book’s relatively tepid judgments of the President and his party, Manchin has deflected or demurred.
—Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 19 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 29 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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