retroflex
Verb · AdjectiveWordNet 3.0
Verb (2)
- bend or turn backwardSynonyms: replicate
- articulate (a consonant) with the tongue curled back against the palate“Indian accents can be characterized by the fact that speakers retroflex their consonants”
Adjective (2)
- bent or curved backwardSynonyms: retroflexed
- pronounced with the tip of the tongue turned back toward the hard palateSynonyms: cacuminal
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
Retroflex \Re"tro*flex\, Retroflexed \Re"tro*flexed\, a. [Pref. retro- + L. flectere, flexum, to bend, to turn.] Reflexed; bent or turned abruptly backward. [1913 Webster]