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Antonyms for recoil


Grammar : Verb
Spell : verb ri-koil; noun ree-koil, ri-koil
Phonetic Transcription : verb rɪˈkɔɪl; noun ˈriˌkɔɪl, rɪˈkɔɪl



Definition of recoil

Origin :
  • early 13c. (transitive) "force back, drive back," from Old French reculer "to go back, give way, recede, retreat" (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *reculare, from Latin re- "back" (see re-) + culus "backside, bottom, fundament." Meaning "shrink back, retreat" is first recorded c.1300; and that of "spring back" (as a gun) in 1520s. Related: Recoiled; recoiling.
  • verb shrink away
Example sentences :
  • You permit your heart (little did I think it was such a froward one) to recoil.
  • Extract from : « Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9) » by Samuel Richardson
  • The recoil, catching him in a bad posture, knocked him backward.
  • Extract from : « The Leopard Woman » by Stewart Edward White
  • Shocked by the sound of my own name, I was ready to recoil abashed.
  • Extract from : « Tales And Novels, Volume 4 (of 10) » by Maria Edgeworth
  • Doubtless the self-respect of the woman was in no way wounded by the master's recoil.
  • Extract from : « Miracles of Our Lord » by George MacDonald
  • When events occur which disturb my life, I always have a movement of recoil.
  • Extract from : « My Double Life » by Sarah Bernhardt
  • We must now glance at the forces of reaction, the recoil to fact.
  • Extract from : « The American Mind » by Bliss Perry
  • After the first recoil she said, scarcely audibly, “I am ready,” and moved.
  • Extract from : « The First Violin » by Jessie Fothergill
  • It is caused by their encounter with the recoil of the preceding wave.
  • Extract from : « Modern Painters Volume I (of V) » by John Ruskin
  • But it should never be forgotten that the thing from which we recoil did not choose to be fashioned so.
  • Extract from : « Lotus Buds » by Amy Carmichael
  • His six 50's flamed and the recoil set the Thunderbolt back on her flaps.
  • Extract from : « A Yankee Flier Over Berlin » by Al Avery

Synonyms for recoil

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019