recoil

He smiled after I busted him for looking, which made me recoil in horror and quickly dart over to hide in the pet food aisle.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

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

From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026

Many judges recoil from that conclusion, and the constitutional inquiry becomes personal.

From Slate ● Jun. 17, 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

Whenever anyone said, or wrote, “Malcolm X, the number two Black Muslim—” I would recoil.

From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey

Half a century later, Jiang is still the reason the Communist Party recoils at any hint of a leader’s spouse wielding power.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

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

Viewers raved over Beharie's work in "White Noise," which is certainly excellent, especially in the scene where she simply recoils, wordless, as she takes in the vile digs anonymous commenters get in at her expense.

From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2023

Brother Khoi recoils, vowing to never eat anything with wings.

From "Inside Out and Back Again" by Thanhha Lai

I’ve always recoiled at having dinner on a first date.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 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

By that point, Layan had forgotten her completely, Omama says, and recoiled when they met.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2025

Whenever a stranger gingerly held out a hand for a sniff, he recoiled.

From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2025

Even Captain Flume recoiled when Doc Daneeka sought him out in the woods for help.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

"He's so scary!" says 16-year-old Skye, recoiling at the mention of the Cat in the Hat.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026

Americans are recoiling at rising restaurant and coffee prices and eating out less, making Starbucks’s turnaround more challenging.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 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

Even though he thought she was recoiling from him, he took another couple of steps in her direction.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan