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

These changes create an inflection point for commercial technology adoption. —Michael Brown, Forbes.com, 20 July 2025

Like so many other trends in travel, the inflection point was the pandemic. —Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 19 July 2025

The media business is at a major inflection point with more moving pieces than it’s seen in years. —Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 17 July 2025

Outlook for cyclicals Callie Cox of Ritholtz sees an inflection point for cyclical sectors, including industrials and financials, and the interest rate sensitive small caps in the second half of the year. —Frank Holland, CNBC, 9 July 2025

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