When asked about the company's losses, the CEO deflected the question by talking about new products.

deflected 是动词 deflect 的过去式。deflect 由前缀 de-（表示"偏离"）和词根 flect（来自拉丁语，意为"弯曲"）组成，字面意思是"使偏离方向"。引申为"转移（话题、注意力等）"，指通过巧妙的方式避开直接回答或处理问题。