impulse

CEFRB2

/ˈɪmpʌls/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A sudden strong desire to do something.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A wish or urge, particularly a sudden one prompting action.

Examples

  • A foolish impulse made me say what I should have left unsaid.

  • Maybe the impulse was working upon her subconscious.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
4

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. The integral of force over time.

  2. A thrust; a push; a sudden force that impels.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. To impel; to incite.

More examples

In context

  • c. 1715-1716, Samuel Clarke, letter to Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz All spontaneous animal motion is performed by mechanical impulse.

  • The impulse to learn drove me to study night and day.

  • When I saw the new book, I couldn't resist the impulse to browse through it.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

Without any thought, he acted on a sudden blank to shout out loud.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

Borrowed from Middle French impulser, from Latin impulsus.