Adjacent Words

Impulse definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

IM'PULSE, n. im'puls. [L. impulsus, from impello. See Impel.]
1. Force communicated; the effect of one body acting on another. Impulse is the effect of motion, and is in proportion to the quantity of matter and velocity of the impelling body.
2. Influence acting on the mind; motive.
These were my natural impulses for the undertaking.
3. Impression; supposed supernatural influence on the mind.
Meantime, by Jove's impulse, Mezentius armed,
Succeeded Turnus--

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an instinctive motive; "profound religious impulses" [syn: urge, impulse]
2: a sudden desire; "he bought it on an impulse" [syn: caprice, impulse, whim]
3: the electrical discharge that travels along a nerve fiber; "they demonstrated the transmission of impulses from the cortex to the hypothalamus" [syn: nerve impulse, nervous impulse, neural impulse, impulse]
4: (electronics) a sharp transient wave in the normal electrical state (or a series of such transients); "the pulsations seemed to be coming from a star" [syn: pulsation, pulsing, pulse, impulse]
5: the act of applying force suddenly; "the impulse knocked him over" [syn: impulse, impulsion, impetus]
6: an impelling force or strength; "the car's momentum carried it off the road" [syn: momentum, impulse]

Merriam Webster's

I. transitive verb (impulsed; impulsing) Date: 1611 to give an impulse to II. noun Etymology: Latin impulsus, from impellere to impel Date: 1647 1. a. inspiration, motivation b. a force so communicated as to produce motion suddenly c. incentive 2. a. the act of driving onward with sudden force ; impulsion b. motion produced by such an impulsion ; impetus c. a wave of excitation transmitted through tissues and especially nerve fibers and muscles that results in physiological activity or inhibition 3. a. a sudden spontaneous inclination or incitement to some usually unpremeditated action b. a propensity or natural tendency usually other than rational 4. a. the product of the average value of a force and the time during which it acts ; the change in momentum produced by the force b. pulse 4a Synonyms: see motive

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 the act or an instance of impelling; a push. 2 an impetus. 3 Physics a an indefinitely large force acting for a very short time but producing a finite change of momentum (e.g. the blow of a hammer). b the change of momentum produced by this or any force. 4 a wave of excitation in a nerve. 5 mental incitement. 6 a sudden desire or tendency to act without reflection (did it on impulse). Phrases and idioms: impulse buying the unpremeditated buying of goods as a result of a whim or impulse. Etymology: L impulsus (as IMPEL)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Impulse Im"pulse, n. [L. impulsus, fr. impellere. See Impel.] 1. The act of impelling, or driving onward with sudden force; impulsion; especially, force so communicated as to produced motion suddenly, or immediately. All spontaneous animal motion is performed by mechanical impulse. --S. Clarke. 2. The effect of an impelling force; motion produced by a sudden or momentary force. 3. (Mech.) The action of a force during a very small interval of time; the effect of such action; as, the impulse of a sudden blow upon a hard elastic body. 4. A mental force which simply and directly urges to action; hasty inclination; sudden motive; momentary or transient influence of appetite or passion; propension; incitement; as, a man of good impulses; passion often gives a violent impulse to the will. These were my natural impulses for the undertaking. --Dryden. Syn: Force; incentive; influence; motive; feeling; incitement; instigation.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Impulse Im*pulse", v. t. [See Impel.] To impel; to incite. [Obs.] --Pope.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(impulses) 1. An impulse is a sudden desire to do something. Unable to resist the impulse, he glanced at the sea again... N-VAR: oft N to-inf 2. An impulse is a short electrical signal that is sent along a wire or nerve or through the air, usually as one of a series. N-COUNT 3. An impulse buy or impulse purchase is something that you decide to buy when you see it, although you had not planned to buy it. The curtains were an impulse buy. ADJ: ADJ n 4. If you do something on impulse, you suddenly decide to do it, without planning it. Sean's a fast thinker, and he acts on impulse... PHRASE: PHR after v

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Thrust, push, impetus, impelling force. 2. Passion, instinct, appetite, inclination, proclivity. 3. Incitement, instigation, motive, influence, sudden thought or feeling.

Moby Thesaurus

actuation, archetypal pattern, archetype, atomic power, automatic writing, automatism, blind impulse, catalyst, collective unconscious, compulsion, compulsiveness, conditioning, constraint, drive, echolalia, echopraxia, electric power, electropower, excitant, exigency, forwardness, goad, haste, hastiness, horsepower, hydraulic power, hydroelectric power, id, impetus, impulsion, impulsiveness, inborn proclivity, incentive, incitation, incitement, instinct, instinctiveness, involuntariness, jet power, libido, lust, manpower, motivation, natural instinct, natural tendency, nuclear power, overhastiness, passion, pinch, piston power, precipitation, precociousness, precocity, prematureness, prematurity, press, pressure, primitive self, propulsion, push, rash impulse, reflex action, rocket power, rush, sheer chemistry, solar power, spur, steam power, stimulant, stress, subconscious urge, thermonuclear power, thrust, unlearned capacity, unreasoning impulse, untimeliness, unwilledness, urge, urgency, vital impulse, water power