impulse

noun

1. A thrust; a push; a sudden force that impels.

   “c. 1715-1716, Samuel Clarke, letter to Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz All spontaneous animal motion is performed by mechanical impulse.”

2. A wish or urge, particularly a sudden one prompting action.

   “The impulse to learn drove me to study night and day.”

   “When I saw the new book, I couldn't resist the impulse to browse through it.”

   “Theſe were my natural Impulses for the undertaking: […]”

   “Tony's face expressed relief, and Nettie sat silent for a moment until the vicar said “It was a generous impulse, but it may have been a momentary one,[…].””

   “An impulse urged him to plant a sudden blow on it, by he forced himself to consider the impolicy of such an act.”

3. The integral of force over time.

   “The total impulse from the impact will depend on the kinetic energy of the projectile.”

verb

1. (transitive)To impel; to incite.

   “With that force so impulsed and prest they are carried under the deepe Ocean.”