1. A surface capable of reflecting sufficient undiffused light to form an image of an object placed in front of it. Also called looking glass.
2. Something that faithfully reflects or gives a true picture of something else.
3. Something worthy of imitation.
tr.v.mir·rored, mir·ror·ing, mir·rors
To reflect in or as if in a mirror: "The city mirrors many of the greatest moments of Western culture"(Olivier Bernier).
[Middle English mirour, from Old French mireor, from mirer, to look at, from Latin mīrārī, to wonder at, from mīrus, wonderful; see smei- in Indo-European roots.]
1. a surface, such as polished metal or glass coated with a metal film, that reflects light without diffusion and produces an image of an object placed in front of it
2. (Furniture) such a reflecting surface mounted in a frame
3. any reflecting surface
4. a thing that reflects or depicts something else: the press is a mirror of public opinion.
vb
(tr) to reflect, represent, or depict faithfully: he mirrors his teacher's ideals.
[C13: from Old French from mirer to look at, from Latin mīrārī to wonder at]
A surface that is able to reflect light, often used to form an image of an object placed in front of it.
Did You Know? The earliest mirrors, some dating to over 3,000 years ago, were highly polished pieces of bronze or another metal. Later on, in the Middle Ages, the technique of covering one side of a piece of glass with a sheet of reflective metal came into being. Nowadays, mirrors are usually coated with an extremely thin layer of silver or aluminum. While you may use mirrors just to look at yourself in the bathroom each morning, in science they have many important uses. Mirrors are used in microscopes, telescopes, and lasers, as well as in devices that collect light for solar power and the devices that make holograms. For instance, a common type of telescope called a reflecting telescope has a concave mirror (curved inward) at one end. This mirror, unlike your bathroom mirror, is coated on the front side with the reflecting layer; if light were allowed to pass through the glass first, it could get distorted and interfere with accurate observation. Light waves hitting the curved surface are reflected so that they all come together at a single point—the focus. The larger the mirror, the more powerful the telescope; the very largest ones are over 30 feet (9 meters) wide.
cheval glass - A tall mirror swung on an upright frame that takes its name from French cheval, "horse"—a synonym for "supporting framework," which describes this mirror.
catoptric - Means pertaining to a mirror, reflection, or reflector.
mirage - From French se mirer, "be reflected," from Latin mirare, "look at"—the same root used in mirror.
a piece of glass or metal having a surface that reflects an image. She spends a lot of time looking in the mirror. spieël مِرآه огледало espelho zrcadlo der Spiegel spejl καθρέφτηςespejo peegel ایینه peili miroirמראה दर्पण, शीशा zrcalo tükör cermin spegill specchio 鏡 거울 veidrodis spogulis cermin spiegelspeillustro, zwierciadło آيينه espelho oglindă зеркало zrkadlo ogledalo ogledalo spegel กระจก ayna 鏡子 дзеркало, люстро آئینہ gương 镜子
verb
to reflect as a mirror does. The smooth surface of the lake mirrored the surrounding mountains. weerspieël يَعْكِس كما في المِرآه отразявам огледално refletir zrcadlit spiegeln spejle αντανακλώ, καθρεφτίζωreflejar peegeldama بازتاب کردن peilata refléter לְהִשתַקֵף शीशा देखना zrcaliti (vissza)tükröz membayangkan, mencerminkan spegla rispecchiare, riflettere 映す 반영하다, 비추다 atspindėti atspoguļot mencerminkan weerspiegelenspeileodzwierciedlać, odbijać څرګندول reflectir a reflecta отражать zrkadliť odbijati ogledati se spegla สะท้อน yansıtmak 反映 відображати, віддзеркалювати آئینے کی طرح منعکس کرنا soi gương 反映
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