as in to turn
to change the course or direction of (something)
the wind deflected the Frisbee just as I was about to lunge for it
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Recent Examples of deflect
Olivera then one-timed a hard right-footed shot that deflected off Whitecaps keeper Yohei Takaoka into the roof of the net.
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Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2024
And determining the exact composition of the double-asteroid system, as well as the consequences of the DART mission, could help space agencies further refine the technology that could deflect asteroids from affecting Earth in the future.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN, 7 Oct. 2024
In one instance, a man survived a gunshot only due to his pocket watch deflecting the bullet, while another joined the Union army after deserting the Confederacy.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 6 Nov. 2024
Trump, meanwhile, spent Wednesday painting Harris and Democrats as divisive, while deflecting criticism of his own xenophobic and anti-immigrant rhetoric.
—Nina Turner, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for deflect 
Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2024
And determining the exact composition of the double-asteroid system, as well as the consequences of the DART mission, could help space agencies further refine the technology that could deflect asteroids from affecting Earth in the future.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN, 7 Oct. 2024
In one instance, a man survived a gunshot only due to his pocket watch deflecting the bullet, while another joined the Union army after deserting the Confederacy.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 6 Nov. 2024
Trump, meanwhile, spent Wednesday painting Harris and Democrats as divisive, while deflecting criticism of his own xenophobic and anti-immigrant rhetoric.
—Nina Turner, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for deflect
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deflect
Verb
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Pearsall turned upfield and raced Antoine Winfield Jr. down the sideline, stiff-arming the Tampa Bay safety and fighting off his tackle to reach the end zone just before being hauled out of bounds.Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
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Copied Share Bengals turn the ball over on downs Rohan Nadkarni The Bengals went 49 yards in 11 plays, but the Ravens stopped them on 4th-and-3.NBC News, NBC News, 8 Nov. 2024
Verb
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The doors will soon swing open for a new doughnut shop in town when Parlor Doughnuts holds its grand opening in Jeffersonville.Ray Padilla, The Courier-Journal, 20 Nov. 2024
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The Piano Lesson: Take away the ghost stuff and focus on the fact that Malcolm Washington’s adaptation of the August Wilson play celebrates and uplifts Black women, the one demographic that pointedly did not swing to the right this year.Nate Jones, Vulture, 16 Nov. 2024
Verb
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County staff reported working excessive hours to respond to the volume of board requests, diverting resources away from the county’s students and school districts, according to the report.Molly Gibbs, The Mercury News, 16 Nov. 2024
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Spirit confirmed in a statement that one of its flights from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, was diverted to the Dominican Republic on Monday.Jay Blackman, NBC News, 12 Nov. 2024
Verb
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This approach allows the edge to handle local processing during connectivity issues, ensuring the wider network can redirect and manage tasks to maintain operations, even if parts are compromised.Jo Debecker, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024
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For example, clicking malicious links can redirect you to harmful websites that either steal personal information or infect your device with malware.Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report, Fox News, 20 Nov. 2024
Verb
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The offer includes two buttermilk pancakes with glazed strawberries, blueberry topping and whipped topping or its combo of two eggs, hash browns and a choice of two strips of bacon or two pork sausage links.Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 5 Nov. 2024
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Use it for everything from creaming butter and sugar to making creamy dips to whipping egg whites into meringues.Tiffany Hopkins, Bon Appétit, 4 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Deflect.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deflect. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.
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