impulse

See also: impulsé and Impulse

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French impulser, from Latin impulsus.

For spelling, as in pulse, the -e (on -lse) is so the end is pronounced /ls/, rather than /lz/ as in pulls, and does not change the vowel (‘u’). Compare else, false, convulse.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɪmpʌls/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: im‧pulse

Noun

impulse (plural impulses)

1. A thrust; a push; a sudden force that impels.
   • (Can we date this quote by S. Clarke and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     All spontaneous animal motion is performed by mechanical impulse.

2. A wish or urge, particularly a sudden one prompting action.

   The impulse to learn drove me to study night and day.

   When I saw the new dictionary, I couldn't resist the impulse to browse through it.

   • (Can we date this quote by Dryden and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)

     These were my natural impulses for the undertaking.

   • 1907, Harold Bindloss, chapter 20, in The Dust of Conflict‎^[1]:

     Tony's face expressed relief, and Nettie sat silent for a moment until the vicar said “It was a generous impulse, but it may have been a momentary one, […] .”

3. (physics) The integral of force over time.

   The total impulse from the impact will depend on the kinetic energy of the bullet.

Derived terms

• impulse buy
• nerve impulse
• on impulse

Related terms

• impel
• impulsion
• impulsive
• impulsively
• impulsiveness
• impulsivity
• impulsor
• pulse

Translations

sudden force that impels

• Basque: olde
• Bulgarian: стимул (bg) m (stimul), импулс (bg) m (impuls)
• Catalan: impuls (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 衝動／冲动 (zh) (chōngdòng), 冲动 (zh) (chōngdòng), 意氣／意气 (zh) (yìqì), 意气 (zh) (yìqì), 衝量／冲量 (zh) (chōngliàng), 冲量 (zh) (chōngliàng), 衝力／冲力 (zh) (chōnglì), 冲力 (zh) (chōnglì)

• Esperanto: impulso (eo)
• Finnish: impulssi (fi)
• French: impulsion (fr)
• Galician: impulso m
• German: Impuls (de) m, Triebkraft f
• Greek: παρόρμηση (el) f (parórmisi), ορμέμφυτο (el) n (ormémfyto)

  Ancient: παρόρμησις f (parórmēsis)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: impulzus (hu)
• Italian: impulso (it), aire (it) m, slancio (it) m, abbrivo (it) m, rincorsa (it) f
• Japanese: 衝動 (ja) (しょうどう, shōdō), 衝撃 (ja) (しょうげき, shōgeki), 推進力 (ja) (すいしんりょく, suishinryoku), インパルス (inparusu), 出来心 (できごころ, dekigokoro)
• Khmer: ពលវេគ (pʊəl veikii)
• Latin: impulsus m
• Persian: تکانه (tekâne)
• Polish: impuls (pl) m
• Portuguese: impulso (pt) m
• Romanian: impuls (ro) n
• Russian: и́мпульс (ru) m (ímpulʹs), поры́в (ru) m (porýv), побужде́ние (ru) n (pobuždénije), толчо́к (ru) m (tolčók)
• Spanish: impulso (es) m
• Swedish: impuls (sv), ingivelse (sv)
• Tagalog: pitlag

wish

• Bulgarian: подбуда (bg) f (podbuda)
• Catalan: antull (ca) m, capritx m, caprici m
• German: Drang (de) m, innerer Antrieb m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Latin: citātus m
• Spanish: capricho (es) m

(physics) integral force over time

• Bulgarian: импулс (bg) m (impuls)
• Catalan: impuls (ca) m, impulsió (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 衝量／冲量 (zh) (chōngliàng), 冲量 (zh) (chōngliàng), 衝力／冲力 (zh) (chōnglì), 冲力 (zh) (chōnglì)

• Czech: impuls síly m
• German: Kraftstoß m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Irish: spreagadh m
• Japanese: 衝撃 (ja) (しょうげき, shōgeki), 推進力 (ja) (すいしんりょく, suishinryoku)
• Russian: и́мпульс (ru) m (ímpulʹs), толчо́к (ru) m (tolčók)
• Spanish: impulso (es) m
• Swedish: impuls (sv) c
• Tagalog: dantay

Verb

1. (obsolete) To impel; to incite.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Alexander Pope to this entry?)

References

• “impulse”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “impulse”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• impulse in the Online Etymology Dictionary

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French

Pronunciation

• Homophones: impulsent, impulses

Verb

impulse

1. first-person singular present indicative of impulser
2. third-person singular present indicative of impulser
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of impulser
4. third-person singular present subjunctive of impulser
5. second-person singular imperative of impulser

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Italian

Verb

impulse

1. third-person singular past historic of impellere

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Latin

Participle

(deprecated template usage) impulse

1. vocative masculine singular of impulsus

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Spanish

Noun

impulse m (plural impulses)

1. push, shove

Verb

impulse

1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of impulsar.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of impulsar.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of impulsar.