Refract /(rē̇*frăkt")/

imp. & p. p. Refracted; p. pr. & vb. n. Refracting

1. To bend sharply and abruptly back; to break off.
2. To break the natural course of, as rays of light or heat, when passing from one transparent medium to another of different density; to cause to deviate from a direct course by an action distinct from reflection; as, a dense medium refracts the rays of light as they pass into it from a rare medium.