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impulse
[ im-puhls ]
/ ˈɪm pʌls /
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noun
adjective
marked by or acting on impulse: an impulse buyer.
bought or acquired on impulse: To reduce expenses, shun impulse items when shopping.
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Origin of impulse
1640–50; <Latin impulsus pressure, impulse, equivalent to im-im-1 + pul- (variant stem of pellere to push) + -sus, variant of -tus suffix of v. action
Words nearby impulse
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use impulse in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for impulse
impulse
/ (ˈɪmpʌls) /
noun
Word Origin for impulse
C17: from Latin impulsus a pushing against, incitement, from impellere to strike against; see impel
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Medical definitions for impulse
impulse
[ ĭm′pŭls′ ]
n.
A sudden pushing or driving force.
A sudden wish or urge that prompts an unpremeditated act or feeling; an abrupt inclination.
The electrochemical transmission of a signal along a nerve fiber that produces an excitatory or inhibitory response at a target tissue.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Scientific definitions for impulse
impulse
[ ĭm′pŭls′ ]
A sudden flow of electrical current in one direction.
An electrical signal traveling along the axon of a neuron. Nerve impulses excite or inhibit activity in other neurons or in the tissues of the body, such as muscles and glands.
The change of momentum of a body or physical system over a time interval in classical mechanics, equal to the force applied times the length of the time interval over which it is applied.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.