recoil
Americanverb (used without object)
-
recoils,
present (3rd person singular)
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recoiled,
past participle, past
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recoiling
present participle
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to draw back; start or shrink back, as in alarm, horror, or disgust.
-
to spring or fly back, as in consequence of force of impact or the force of the discharge, as a firearm.
- Synonyms:
- rebound
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to spring or come back; react (usually followed by on orupon ).
Plots frequently recoil upon the plotters.
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Physics. (of an atom, a nucleus, or a particle) to undergo a change in momentum as a result either of a collision with an atom, a nucleus, or a particle or of the emission of a particle.
noun
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an act of recoiling.
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the distance through which a weapon moves backward after discharging.
verb
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to jerk back, as from an impact or violent thrust
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(often foll by from) to draw back in fear, horror, or disgust
to recoil from the sight of blood
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to go wrong, esp so as to hurt the perpetrator
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(of a nucleus, atom, molecule, or elementary particle) to change momentum as a result of the emission of a photon or particle
noun
-
-
the backward movement of a gun when fired
-
the distance moved
-
-
the motion acquired by a particle as a result of its emission of a photon or other particle
-
the act of recoiling
Synonym Usage
See wince 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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recoilsimple
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recoilssimple
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have recoiledperfect
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has recoiledperfect
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am recoilingprogressive
-
are recoilingprogressive
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is recoilingprogressive
-
have been recoilingperfect progressive
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has been recoilingperfect progressive
Past
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recoiledsimple
-
had recoiledperfect
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was recoilingprogressive
-
were recoilingprogressive
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had been recoilingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of recoil
1175–1225; Middle English recoilen, reculen (v.) < Old French reculer, equivalent to re- re- + -culer, verbal derivative of cul rump, buttocks; see culet
Explanation
A recoil is a movement backwards, usually from some force or impact. The recoil of a gun is a backward movement caused by momentum. Your trip to the shooting range might make your mom recoil — from horror, not momentum. Recoil has both a verb and a noun form, meaning any kind of rebound or spring backwards. It doesn’t even have to be from an actual force. You might recoil when you see a snake, or recoil at the thought of having to eat squid. In those cases it’s more like a cringe or a flinch from something that’s scary, disgusting, or painful. Eating squid might in fact be all of those things to you.
Vocabulary lists containing recoil
The Lingo of Body Language
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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List 7
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
At the same time, photon recoil continues to propel it forward, creating a steering system that works somewhat like the directional control used in larger vehicles.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 18, 2026
He smiled after I busted him for looking, which made me recoil in horror and quickly dart over to hide in the pet food aisle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Many judges recoil from that conclusion, and the constitutional inquiry becomes personal.
From Slate ● Jun. 17, 2026
“The mistake was natural, for most men recoil from war and the danger it entails. Washington was one who didn’t. He was part of the small class who find war invigorating and seductive.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
Her hands find Madame’s face, and the old woman’s cheek is so hot that Marie-Laure’s fingers recoil as though scalded.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
Maekar recoils at the thought of a child of royal birth subsisting on salted beef.
From Salon ● Feb. 23, 2026
Having fashioned a creature from dead body parts, the scientist recoils from the result, which appears to him to be a monster of “unparalleled barbarity,” and abandons his construction.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 16, 2026
He practices a politics of inspiration, and the Surge recoils at politicians who try to inspire us.
From Slate ● Apr. 5, 2025
Then, he recoils in disgust, a flyout that could have helped the Cubs reach the World Series infamously bouncing off the arms of Steve Bartman instead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2023
Brother Khoi recoils, vowing to never eat anything with wings.
From "Inside Out and Back Again" by Thanhha Lai
With high inflation ravaging the economy, Greenspan recoiled when he learned Ford’s advisers planned a grassroots movement to encourage personal savings by passing out buttons that proclaimed, “Whip Inflation Now.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
The Hungarian photographer recoiled at the work of American photographers such as Ansel Adams, whose “cult of technical perfection,” according to Patricia Albers, risked “killing their subjects with irrelevant detail.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 20, 2026
He recoiled from me, and I couldn’t blame him; he had no idea where he was or who I was.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2025
Arriving here shortly after stealing first place, little brother spent the next three days giving it back to a Dodger team that met the moment while the Padres recoiled from it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2025
When he scooted closer, she recoiled and started to shriek.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
Americans are recoiling at rising restaurant and coffee prices and eating out less, making Starbucks’s turnaround more challenging.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2025
We’ll see if voters can reward this one while recoiling.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2025
De Guzman, who also curated an art show called “Roots of Cool” about trees, noted that Los Angeles seems to actually shrink during the hotter months, as if recoiling from the sun.
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2025
What I'm suggesting is that our mass recoiling at Sara Ramirez's Che Diaz on "And Just Like That…" may be misdirected.
From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2023
Even though he thought she was recoiling from him, he took another couple of steps in her direction.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
