impulse
Other forms: impulses
An impulse is a sudden force or desire — this could be an electrical impulse, or an impulse to get some pizza.
If you act on a sudden feeling or thought, you’re following an impulse. That's like a whim: an impulse isn't something you've given a lot of thought. Another meaning of impulse is an electrical charge or pulse. Electrical impulses are coursing through wires all through your house every day. Both kinds of impulses make things happen. The electrical impulse keeps the refrigerator going, and then you have an impulse to eat all the ice cream in the fridge.
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an impelling force or strength
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synonyms:
momentum
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type of:
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force, forcefulness, strength
physical energy or intensity
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force, forcefulness, strength
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the act of applying force suddenly“the impulse knocked him over”
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type of:
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drive, driving force, thrust
the act of applying force to propel something
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drive, driving force, thrust
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an instinctive motive“profound religious impulses”
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synonyms:
urge
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types:
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abience
(psychology) an urge to withdraw or avoid a situation or an object
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adience
(psychology) an urge to accept or approach a situation or an object
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Thanatos, death instinct, death wish
(psychoanalysis) an unconscious urge to die
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itchy feet, wanderlust
very strong or irresistible impulse to travel
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type of:
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motivation, motive, need
the psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action; that which gives purpose and direction to behavior
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a sudden desire
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(electronics) a sharp transient wave in the normal electrical state (or a series of such transients)
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type of:
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undulation, wave
(physics) a movement up and down or back and forth
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undulation, wave
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the electrical discharge that travels along a nerve fiber“they demonstrated the transmission of impulses from the cortex to the hypothalamus”
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synonyms:
nerve impulse, nervous impulse, neural impulse
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types:
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action potential
the local voltage change across the cell wall as a nerve impulse is transmitted
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type of:
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electrical discharge
a discharge of electricity
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action potential
/ˌɪmˈpəls/
/ˈɪmpəls/
Vocabulary lists containing impulse
With a name that translates into Stout Heart, fifteen-year-old Mafatu, the son of the Great Chief of the Polynesian island of Hikueru, is determined to conquer his fear of the sea.
On a hike in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, thirteen-year-old Erin Rowe makes a new friend when they both get lost and must rely on each other to survive.
In this third book of the Front Desk series, seventh-grader Mia Tang and her parents return from a vacation to discover that they are in danger of losing the Calivista Motel.
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