recoil
/ri'kɔil/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- A sudden backward movement: A quick, forceful movement in the opposite direction, often as a reaction to a force or impact.
- The backward kick of a firearm: The sudden, backward jerk of a gun when it is fired.
Verb:
- To spring or jerk back: To move suddenly backward or away from something, often due to force, shock, or fear.
- To shrink back in fear, horror, or disgust: To react with a physical or emotional withdrawal from something unpleasant or frightening.
- To have an adverse consequence for the originator: (Of an action or plan) to return and cause harm or problems for the person who initiated it.
Examples of Usage
Noun:
- The rifle has a strong recoil. (The rifle kicks back forcefully when fired.)
- He felt the recoil of the spring as he released it. (He felt the spring jump back into place.)
Verb:
- The gun recoiled sharply into his shoulder. (The gun kicked back forcefully against his shoulder.)
- She recoiled in horror at the sight. (She drew back suddenly because the sight was horrifying.)
- His plan to spread rumors recoiled on him when the truth was revealed. (His plan to spread rumors caused problems for him later.)
Advanced Usage
"Recoil from (something)": To draw back from something physically or to be unwilling to do something because of fear, disgust, or reluctance.
- He recoiled from the idea of cheating. (He was strongly against and unwilling to consider the idea of cheating.)
"Recoil at the thought/idea of": To react with strong aversion or disgust to a mental concept.
- Many people recoil at the thought of eating insects. (Many people are disgusted by the idea of eating insects.)
Variants and Related Words
- Recoilless (adj): Designed to minimize or eliminate backward kick, typically describing a type of firearm.
- The soldiers used a recoilless rifle. (The soldiers used a rifle that did not kick back when fired.)
Synonyms
- Verb: Flinch, shrink, wince, kick back, bounce back, backfire, rebound.
- Noun: Kick, backlash, rebound.
Related Phrasal Verbs
(Note: "Recoil" is not typically used in standard phrasal verb constructions. The concept is usually expressed with "recoil from" as shown in Advanced Usage.)
Related Idioms
- "Recoil on/upon someone": (Of an action) to have negative consequences for the person who performed it.
- His lies eventually recoiled on him, and he lost everyone's trust. (His lies later caused him harm by making people stop trusting him.)
Noun
- a movement back from an impact
- the backward jerk of a gun when it is fired
Verb
- spring back, as from a forceful thrust
- The gun kicked back into my shoulder
- spring back; spring away from an impact
- The rubber ball bounced
- These particles do not resile but they unite after they collide
- come back to the originator of an action with an undesired effect
- Your comments may backfire and cause you a lot of trouble
- draw back, as with fear or pain
- she flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf