spasm
/'spæzm/
Definition
- Noun:
- A sudden, involuntary, and often painful muscular contraction: A "spasm" is a quick, uncontrolled tightening of a muscle or group of muscles.
- A sudden, brief period of intense activity, feeling, or occurrence: Figuratively, a "spasm" can describe a short, sudden burst of something, such as an emotion or action.
Examples of Usage
- Noun (Muscular):
- A painful spasm in his back made it difficult to stand.
- The muscle spasm was caused by dehydration.
- Noun (Figurative):
- He felt a spasm of guilt when he remembered his promise.
- The market experienced a spasm of volatility after the news report.
Advanced Usage
- "in spasm": Describing a muscle that is currently contracted involuntarily.
- The calf muscle was in spasm for several minutes.
- "a spasm of": Used to introduce the nature of the sudden burst.
- a spasm of coughing, a spasm of creativity, a spasm of violence.
Variants and Related Words
- Spasmodic (adj): Occurring or done in brief, irregular bursts.
- He made spasmodic attempts to fix the leak.
- Spastic (adj): Relating to or affected by muscle spasm. (Note: When referring to a medical condition, this term is often replaced by more specific, person-first language.)
- spastic movements.
Synonyms
- Cramp: A painful, involuntary muscle contraction.
- Convulsion: A violent, involuntary muscular contraction (often more severe and widespread than a spasm).
- Twitch: A small, quick, involuntary muscular movement.
- Paroxysm: A sudden attack or violent expression of a particular emotion or activity.
Related Phrases
- Muscle spasm: The specific term for an involuntary contraction of a muscle.
- Bronchial spasm: A sudden constriction of the muscles in the airways.
- Coronary artery spasm: A sudden tightening of the muscles within the arteries of the heart.
Related Idioms
- No direct common idioms are based solely on the word "spasm." However, the figurative use often appears in descriptive phrases like "a spasm of fear" or "a spasm of activity."
Noun
-
(pathology) sudden constriction of a hollow organ (as a blood vessel)
-
a painful and involuntary muscular contraction
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