1
as in incentive
something that arouses action or activity
the new auto factory was just the impulse that the local economy needed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in inclination
a habitual attraction to some activity or thing
the universal, fundamental impulse of self-preservation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of impulse
The decision to bomb Iran revealed the conflict between some of the president's fundamental impulses.
—
Susan Page, USA Today, 23 June 2025
Everyone fantasizes about this profession and this industry being so deeply creative and born of impulse and character.
—Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025
In Pip Adam’s extraordinary, humane novel Audition, recently released in the United States, space is both the dystopian place where humanity’s worst impulses flourish and a site of uncharted possibility where humans can become something entirely new.
—Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 21 June 2025
Later in the day, your humanitarian impulses or desire to assist someone might need to be fine-tuned.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for impulse
Susan Page, USA Today, 23 June 2025
Everyone fantasizes about this profession and this industry being so deeply creative and born of impulse and character.
—Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 16 June 2025
In Pip Adam’s extraordinary, humane novel Audition, recently released in the United States, space is both the dystopian place where humanity’s worst impulses flourish and a site of uncharted possibility where humans can become something entirely new.
—Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 21 June 2025
Later in the day, your humanitarian impulses or desire to assist someone might need to be fine-tuned.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for impulse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impulse
Noun
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The bill eliminates critical renewable energy incentives, redirects funding toward fossil fuels and nuclear power, and dismantles key progressive priorities of the Biden administration.—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
7 July 2025
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Advertisement While there has never been a federal mandate to buy electric vehicles, Trump’s bill does eliminate federal tax incentives for electric-vehicle owners, which is expected to hurt Musk’s company Tesla.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
7 July 2025
Noun
-
The inclination of those operating from this skillset is to evaluate the interrelationships and interconnections within and between steps, processes, systems and people.—
Terina Allen,
Forbes.com,
30 June 2025
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Marseille’s artistic inclination is matched by an obsession with food which, typically, is very different from what appears on plates in the rest of France.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
20 June 2025
Noun
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But another member of the Southeastern Connecticut delegation who served as the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Aundre Bumgardner, D-Groton, said that the Plainfield proposal had been the primary impetus for the bill.—
Mark Pazniokas,
Hartford Courant,
9 July 2025
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Still, Streeter suggested that further pressure from the U.K. regulator could provide the impetus required to accelerate changes within the company.—
Karen Gilchrist,
CNBC,
8 July 2025
Noun
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This practice has fostered a tendency to conflate diagnosis with management frameworks, confuse co-morbidities with symptoms, and ultimately blur the distinction between obesity as a risk factor and as a disease state.—
Francesco Rubino,
Time,
9 July 2025
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The bill ultimately continues a generations-long Republican tendency to transfer wealth upward while abandoning working Americans. Davis: The wealth transfer Trump seeks is from government to taxpayers.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 July 2025
Noun
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Jason Bateman even offered Shepard some encouragement to lock it down.—
Rachel Flynn,
People.com,
12 July 2025
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By July, a garden in full bloom may need some encouragement to keep its beautiful flowers in supply.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
11 July 2025
Noun
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However, instead of removing the minerals from the water, these devices make the minerals soluble in the water.—
Timothy Dale,
Better Homes & Gardens,
14 Mar. 2025
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However, these incidents underscore the importance of regularly updating your devices to stay protected against evolving threats.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
14 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Chinese markets were sharply higher in earlier trading, buoyed by signs of possible additional stimulus measures in China and Goldman Sachs Group’s upgrade of Hong Kong stocks to market-weight.—
Teresa Cerojano,
Chicago Tribune,
11 July 2025
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Using a tool to measure how patients perceive stimuli like temperature and touch, researchers in Germany found that women with lipedema had a lower pain threshold compared with other women.—
Francesca Gilbard,
NBC news,
10 July 2025
Noun
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Each drill was designed to test Beringer’s physical makeup and his aptitude for the game.—
Jon Krawczynski,
New York Times,
11 July 2025
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The Watch 8 series also offers a 12-minute running test to gauge your current aptitude for the activity from 1 (beginner) to 10 (pro).—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
11 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Impulse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impulse. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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