Link Centre Dictionary

recoil

re·coil

UK/ɹɪˈkɔɪl/ US/riˈkɔɪl/ uncommon archaic obsolete
verb (3) noun (2)

verb

1.

draw back, as with fear or pain

  • “she flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf”
Synonyms
2.

spring back; spring away from an impact

  • “The rubber ball bounced”
  • “These particles do not resile but they unite after they collide”
Synonyms
3.

spring back, as from a forceful thrust

  • “The gun kicked back into my shoulder”
Synonyms

noun

1.

the backward jerk of a gun when it is fired

Synonyms
2.

Origin

From Old French reculer. Further from Latin re- + cūlus.

Phrases

  • recoil pad
  • recoil spring
  • recoil start

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.