recoil

Although the resulting recoil force is extremely small, it acts continuously over millions of years.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026

“You would think that a human being with a shred of dignity would recoil from this thing,” Oswalt said.

From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2026

People do often recoil when they discover a person is wearing smart glasses.

From BBC ● May 13, 2026

They also boost earnings per share and help propel stock prices, which is why many investors prize them and would recoil at the notion of government interference.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 19, 2026

The word enters my ear like a snake, searing itself into my brain, and I recoil, like his statement of ridiculousness pushed me.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Having fashioned a creature from dead body parts, the scientist recoils from the result, which appears to him to be a monster of “unparalleled barbarity,” and abandons his construction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 16, 2026

When Maggie makes an ambiguous reference to Alma’s history, her professor recoils.

From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2025

He practices a politics of inspiration, and the Surge recoils at politicians who try to inspire us.

From Slate ● Apr. 5, 2025

Although Watkins has been the center of attention since middle school, when Gottlieb started hearing whispers of an eighth-grade phenom on the recruiting circuit, Watkins recoils when asked about her success.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 30, 2023

In the newsreel the destroyer’s guns fire without sound and, half a world away, amid the elegance of an old- fashioned cinema, Tessie Zizmo feels the recoils.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

With high inflation ravaging the economy, Greenspan recoiled when he learned Ford’s advisers planned a grassroots movement to encourage personal savings by passing out buttons that proclaimed, “Whip Inflation Now.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026

Walking into his kitchen, Tim Yoder recoiled at a message on his refrigerator door: “Shop Samsung water filters.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026

While reviews were largely positive, The Quietus recoiled at the lack of heavy guitar anthems in a scathing screed that employed descriptors like "unintrusive", "clunking" and "by-numbers detritus".

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2025

He recoiled from me, and I couldn’t blame him; he had no idea where he was or who I was.

From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2025

Ash recoiled in shock, her hand covering her pink cheek.

From "Ash" by Malinda Lo

He said: "I said what I said back in February, I am not recoiling from that."

From BBC ● May 10, 2026

But he proves a skilled physical comic, tussling with his boots or recoiling from a kick in the shins from Lucky.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2025

We’ll see if voters can reward this one while recoiling.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2025

De Guzman, who also curated an art show called “Roots of Cool” about trees, noted that Los Angeles seems to actually shrink during the hotter months, as if recoiling from the sun.

From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2025

I reached to steady him but he jerked away, violently recoiling from my touch.

From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys