What is a point of contraflexure in a beam?

A point of contraflexure (or inflection point) is a location in a beam where the bending moment changes sign from positive to negative or vice versa, meaning the moment equals zero at that point. The beam curvature changes direction at this point. Points of contraflexure are important in design as they indicate locations where reinforcement can be curtailed in concrete beams and are used in approximate analysis methods.