[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

recoil \recoil"\ r-ekoil", v. i. imp.  p. p. recoiled
   r-ekoild"; p. pr.  vb. n. recoiling. oe. recoilen,
   f. reculer, fr. l. pref. re- re- + culus the fundament. the
   english word was perhaps influenced in form by accoil.
   1913 webster
   1. to start, roll, bound, spring, or fall back; to take a
      reverse motion; to be driven or forced backward; to
      return.
      1913 webster

            evil on itself shall back recoil.     --milton.
      1913 webster

            the solemnity of her demeanor made it impossible . .
            . that we should recoil into our ordinary spirits.
                                                  --de quincey.
      1913 webster

   2. to draw back, as from anything repugnant, distressing,
      alarming, or the like; to shrink. --shak.
      1913 webster

   3. to turn or go back; to withdraw one's self; to retire.
      obs. "to your bowers recoil." --spenser.
      1913 webster
see also:
recoiled recoiling 

[2] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

recoil \recoil"\ r-ekoil", v. t.
   to draw or go back. obs. --spenser.
   1913 webster

[3] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

recoil \recoil"\, n.
   1. a starting or falling back; a rebound; a shrinking; as,
      the recoil of nature, or of the blood.
      1913 webster

   2. the state or condition of having recoiled.
      1913 webster

            the recoil from formalism is skepticism. --f. w.
                                                  robertson.
      1913 webster

   3. specifically, the reaction or rebounding of a firearm when
      discharged.
      1913 webster

   recoil dynamometer gunnery, an instrument for measuring
      the force of the recoil of a firearm.

   recoil escapement. see the note under escapement.
      1913 webster
see also:
recoil dynamometer recoil escapement escapement 

[4] : WordNet (r) 2.0

recoil
     n 1: the backward jerk of a gun when it is fired syn: kick
     2: a movement back from an impact syn: repercussion, rebound,
         backlash
     v 1: draw back, as with fear or pain; "she flinched when they
          showed the slaughtering of the calf" syn: flinch, squinch,
           funk, cringe, shrink, wince, quail
     2: spring back; spring away from an impact; "the rubber ball
        bounced"; "these particles do not resile but they unite
        after they collide" syn: bounce, resile, take a hop,
         spring, bound, rebound, reverberate, ricochet
     3: spring back, as from a forceful thrust; "the gun kicked back
        into my shoulder" syn: kick back, kick
see also:
kick repercussion rebound backlash flinch squinch 
funk cringe shrink wince quail 
bounce resile take a hop spring bound 
reverberate ricochet kick back 

[5] : Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

190 moby thesaurus words for "recoil":
   about the bush, antagonism, antipathy, avoid, avoidance, backfire,
   backlash, backlashing, backwash, balk, bashfulness, beat around,
   beg the question, blanch, blench, blink, boggle, boggling,
   boomerang, bounce, bounce back, bound, bound back, cannon,
   cannon off, carom, clashing, clout, collision, comeback,
   compunction, conflict, confutation, contradiction, contraposition,
   contrariety, contrecoup, counter, counteraction, counterblast,
   counterblow, counterposition, counterstroke, counterworking,
   crankiness, cringe, crotchetiness, demur, demurral, diffidence,
   disapprove of, dissent, dodge, draw back, duck, equivocate, evade,
   evasion, exchange, fade, fall back, fallback, falter, faltering,
   fence, fight shy of, flinch, fly back, force, friction, funk,
   give-and-take, grimace, hang back, hang off, have qualms,
   have repercussions, hedge, hem and haw, hesitance, hesitancy,
   hesitate, hesitation, hold off, impact, impress, impression,
   imprint, interchange, interference, jib, kick, kick back, kickback,
   lash back, look askance at, make bones about, mark, modesty,
   nonconformity, objection, opposition, opposure, oppugnance,
   oppugnancy, parry, pause, perverseness, print, protest, pull away,
   pull back, pullback, pullout, pussyfoot, put off, quail, quake,
   qualm, qualm of conscience, qualmishness, reaction, rebound,
   rebuff, recalcitrance, recalcitrate, recalcitration, reciprocation,
   reel back, reflex, renitency, repercuss, repercussion, reply,
   repugnance, repulse, resile, resilience, resistance, response,
   retaliation, retort, retreat, return, revolt, revolt at, ricochet,
   scruple, scrupulosity, scrupulousness, shake, sheer off, shift,
   shift off, show distaste for, shrink, shrink back, shrink from,
   shrinking, shudder, shudder at, shy, shy at, shy away, shy off,
   shyness, sidestep, sidestepping, snap back, spring, spring back,
   squinch, start, start aside, start back, step aside, stick,
   stick at, stickle, stickling, strain, swerve, swimming upstream,
   tremble, turn aside, ward off, waver, weasel, weasel out, wince

Recoil >> R Words
Recoil, definition of term: Recoil
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