# cerebral

/ˈsɛɹəbɹəɫ/ (US) · /səɹˈiːbɹəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/cerebral
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 2. relating to the brain

adjective · CEFR C1 · Technical

relating to the brain, especially the part that controls thought and movement.

For teachers: pertaining to the cerebrum or the brain as a whole.

- The patient was kept in the hospital for observation after a cerebral injury.
- The surgeon explained that the cerebral cortex is responsible for many high-level functions, including language and information processing.

### 3. linguistics

adjective · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Technical

a technical word for sounds made by curling the tongue back.

For teachers: an older term for retroflex consonants, produced with the tip of the tongue curled back against the palate.

- In some languages, the 't' sound is cerebral, meaning the tongue curls back.
- Nineteenth-century philologists frequently used the term 'cerebral' to categorise the retroflex consonants found in Sanskrit and other Indic languages.

Usage: This term is largely replaced by 'retroflex' in modern linguistics.

## Examples

- The movie is quite cerebral and requires your full attention.
- While many action films rely on explosions, this thriller offers a more cerebral experience focused on psychological games.
- Critics often contrast his early, visceral performances with the more cerebral and detached style he adopted later in his career, which some audiences found difficult to connect with emotionally.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.