Impulsive Meaning
/ɪmˈpʌlsɪv/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjHaving the power of driving or impelling; giving an impulse; moving; impellent.
adjActuated by impulse or by transient feelings; inclined to make rapid decisions without due consideration.
Sentence Examples
Tom is an impulsive buyer.
Tom is a little impulsive, isn't he?
Doing that was a very impulsive thing to do.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
Her ____ decision to quit her job without any backup plan surprised everyone.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
His ____ nature often leads him to buy expensive things that he doesn't really need.
Word Origin & History
Borrowed from Middle French impulsif, from Latin impulsivus.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Poor men! poor papers! We and they / Do some impulsive force obey."
— 1718, Mat[thew] Prior, “Alma: Or, The Progress of the Mind”, in Poems on Several Occasions, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], and John Barber […], →OCLC:
"my heart, impulsive and wayward"
— 1847 November 1, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Evangeline, a Tale of Acadie, Boston, Mass.: William D. Ticknor & Company, →OCLC, (please specify either |part=I or II):
"Americans are not libertarians in the Cato Institute sense of the word, but they are folk libertarians in this sense of impulsive behaviour, which is a feature of American life that anyone who wants to govern the United States, Democratic or Republican, has to be aware of."
— 2025 April 28, Ross Douthat, Nick Adams, “Condition of America”, in New Left Review, number 152, →ISSN:
"Notwithstanding all which Motives and impulsives , Sir Thomas Overbury refused to be sent abroad , with such terms"
— 1613, Henry Wotton, letter to Edmund Bacon:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
Her ____ decision to quit her job without any backup plan surprised everyone.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
His ____ nature often leads him to buy expensive things that he doesn't really need.