impulse
noun
[ ˈɪmpʌls ]
• a sudden strong and unreflective urge or desire to act.
• "I had an almost irresistible impulse to giggle"
Similar:
urge,
instinct,
drive,
compulsion,
need,
itch,
whim,
caprice,
desire,
fancy,
notion,
• something that causes something to happen or happen more quickly; an impetus.
• "an added impulse to this process of renewal"
Similar:
inspiration,
stimulation,
stimulus,
incitement,
motivation,
encouragement,
fillip,
spur,
prod,
catalyst,
• a pulse of electrical energy; a brief current.
• "nerve impulses"
• a force acting briefly on a body and producing a finite change of momentum.
• "ability to communicate motion by impulse"
Origin:
early 17th century (as a verb in the sense ‘give an impulse to’): the verb from Latin impuls- ‘driven on’, the noun from impulsus ‘impulsion’, both from the verb impellere (see impel).
on impulse
• suddenly and without forethought; impulsively.
• "on an impulse he returned to the bar"
Similar:
impulsively,
spontaneously,
on the spur of the moment,
without forethought,
without planning,
without thinking twice,
without premeditation,
unpremeditatedly,
Opposite:
with forethought,
