circumflex
cir·cum·flex f8 [circumflex circumflexes] BrE [ˈsɜːkəmfleks] NAmE [ˈsɜːrkəmfleks] (also ˌcircumflex ˈaccent) noun
the mark placed over a vowel in some languages to show how it should be pronounced, as over the o in rôle
compare ↑acute accent, ↑grave 2, ↑tilde, ↑umlaut
Word Origin:
late 16th cent.: from Latin circumflexus (from circum ‘around, about’ + flectere ‘to bend’), translating Greek perispōmenos ‘drawn around’.
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