A cylinder head construction for a combustion engine, which comprises a wall structure defining a cylinder head lower surface adapted to contact a mating surface of a cylinder block, and having an inwardly recessed wall defining a combustion chamber, an exhaust port defining wall open at one end at said inwardly recessed wall and at the opposite end in a cylinder head side wall, and adapted to be selectively opened and closed by two separate exhaust valves, wherein a pair of exhaust ports, one for each exhaust valve, are defined at least adjacent the exhaust valves, respectively, a coolant passage defined between the wall structure and the exhaust port defining wall, and a wall member extending between the exhaust port defining wall and the wall structure for deflecting a coolant in the coolant passage so as to flow into a space between the exhaust ports.