1
as in incentives
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 tendencies
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 impulses
Catalina’s character is exceptionally well drawn, and the subtle, fantastic elements — unanswered phone calls, a sense of an unseen presence, intuitive impulses — lend the film a distinctive, poetic identity.
—
Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 23 Oct. 2025
The changes to the prefrontal cortex can impact their decision making and control their impulses.
—Laura Trujillo, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
The electrodes produce electrical impulses that affect brain activity to treat certain medical conditions.
—Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2025
The moment emotion gets involved, impulses tend to take over.
—Chris Stevens, Nashville Tennessean, 19 Oct. 2025
Here, the creation is an innocent, subject to the same impulses of rage as a toddler.
—Lindsey Bahr, Boston Herald, 17 Oct. 2025
People sometimes compare the brain to a digital machine operating with sequences of impulses and silences.
—New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2025
There are three competing impulses from three capitals.
—Happymon Jacob, Time, 16 Oct. 2025
Hawke sells all of Hart’s delusions, destructive impulses, and high-velocity downward spirals with an energy that keeps this bitchy, old-school collection of bon mots and screwball bickering moving along nicely.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 15 Oct. 2025
Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 23 Oct. 2025
The changes to the prefrontal cortex can impact their decision making and control their impulses.
—Laura Trujillo, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
The electrodes produce electrical impulses that affect brain activity to treat certain medical conditions.
—Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2025
The moment emotion gets involved, impulses tend to take over.
—Chris Stevens, Nashville Tennessean, 19 Oct. 2025
Here, the creation is an innocent, subject to the same impulses of rage as a toddler.
—Lindsey Bahr, Boston Herald, 17 Oct. 2025
People sometimes compare the brain to a digital machine operating with sequences of impulses and silences.
—New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2025
There are three competing impulses from three capitals.
—Happymon Jacob, Time, 16 Oct. 2025
Hawke sells all of Hart’s delusions, destructive impulses, and high-velocity downward spirals with an energy that keeps this bitchy, old-school collection of bon mots and screwball bickering moving along nicely.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impulses
Noun
-
President Joe Biden's signature Inflation Reduction Act offered many incentives for the development of these alternative energy sources.—
Tom Rogers,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Germany scrapped incentives to boost purchases of fully electric vehicles about two years ago, a policy change that led to a sharp drop in demand for fully electric vehicles, initially.—
Lora Kolodny,
CNBC,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
In May, the 26-season DWTS vet took to TikTok to address some viewers' tendencies toward scrutiny and name-calling.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Fire is indeed a concern in homes maintained by people with hoarding tendencies.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Mercury News,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In October 2024 ahead of her own stay at MSG, Billie Eilish recorded encouragements to take the subways for environmental benefits.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Hints, counsels, warnings, remonstrations, even encouragements are, in the end, of limited value.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The cosmos is asking us to define our aspirations and inclinations.—
Lisa Stardust,
Refinery29,
20 Oct. 2025
-
LaCombe, who played forward in his youth, has shown great improvement in his own end but still has the offensive inclinations to be a point producer.—
Eric Stephens,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Cooperation turns into conflict Even countries that share common goals or values sometimes compete, and the motivations are rarely simple.—
Kaleb Demerew,
The Conversation,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Still, the motivations behind the song feel somewhat obscured.—
Jayson Buford,
Rolling Stone,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
More money is apt to make homeschooling worse and far less tailored to the individual student and their interests and aptitudes by encouraging parents to substitute pricey group programs for the requisite effort of individualized instruction.—
Marie Sapirie,
Forbes.com,
25 Aug. 2025
-
Students are sorted into these houses based on their personalities and magical aptitudes.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
5 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Of course, Matthieu brings his own set of creative affinities, which are new and incredibly enriching, but not at the expense of existing relationships.—
Joelle Diderich,
Footwear News,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Without being able to compute directly from real stimuli, perceptual models could capture ideas in theory but fail simple real-world tests.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Our amygdala is overactive, our nervous systems are fried and our dopamine cycles are hijacked by short-term stimuli.—
Chris Schembra,
Rolling Stone,
22 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Impulses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impulses. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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