1. (

• urge ,
• impulse

) an instinctive motive; "profound religious impulses" ;

2. (

• caprice ,
• impulse ,
• whim

) a sudden desire; "he bought it on an impulse" ;

3. (

• nerve_impulse ,
• nervous_impulse ,
• neural_impulse ,
• impulse

) the electrical discharge that travels along a nerve fiber; "they demonstrated the transmission of impulses from the cortex to the hypothalamus" ;

4. (

• pulsation ,
• pulsing ,
• pulse ,
• impulse ,

) (electronics) a sharp transient wave in the normal electrical state (or a series of such transients); "the pulsations seemed to be coming from a star" ;

5. (

• impulse ,
• impulsion ,
• impetus

) the act of applying force suddenly; "the impulse knocked him over" ;

6. (

• momentum ,
• impulse

) an impelling force or strength; "the car's momentum carried it off the road" ;