[keithnz]

no, what dan said is better, it might annoy you, but physics is such that wording is important. Even then, nearly all wording is losing information and in some cases changes it from the reality. You are asking a question which you want an answer but the question itself has a troubling fit with reality as you try to relate to things in terms that seem familiar.

[StuffedParrot]

No, physics is such that semantics are important. What’s the observable difference between absorption/emission and reflection? If the latter doesn’t happen at all the distinction is meaningless.