inflection point

noun

1

: a moment when significant change occurs or may occur : turning point

At 18, Bobby is at an inflection point that will largely determine the course of his life.

—Stacy Perman

… the gradual move away from big-iron machines toward work stations and personal computers has been going on for years in corporate America—but the inflection point came suddenly.

—Steve Lohr

It depends on us, on the choices we make, particularly at certain inflection points in history; particularly when big changes are happening and everything seems up for grabs.

—Barack Obama

2

mathematics : a point on a curve that separates an arc concave upward from one concave downward and vice versa

Examples of inflection point in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

However, with multiple suppliers accelerating expansion, the eventual release of new capacity has raised fears of an inflection point in chip prices, which could threaten current high margins. — CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026

Ferrari’s first road car to break 1,000 metric horsepower was the SF90, an inflection point that shifted the conversation from supercar intangibles to cold, hard numbers. — Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 26 Aug. 2026

The Wall Street Journal is giving opinion authors the go-ahead to use AI in the writing process without requiring AI disclosures — a move by a top newspaper that feels like an inflection point for the media industry. — Maggie Harrison Dupré, Futurism, 26 Aug. 2026

That inflection point served as a launching pad for Díaz’s recent book. — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1708, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for inflection point

• adjoint
• anoint
• appoint
• checkpoint
• conjoint
• disjoint
• endpoint
• gunpoint
• midpoint
• nonpoint
• pinpoint
• standpoint