Action vs. Reaction — What's the Difference?

A gesture or movement.

An action performed or a feeling experienced in response to a situation or event.

The process of doing something to achieve an aim.

A response to something.

A movement or series of movements that require effort.

A reverse movement or tendency.

The fact or process of doing something, typically to achieve an aim.

A change or result caused by an action or other cause.

A manner or method of behaving or functioning.

The ability to respond to something, especially sensory stimuli.

Fast-paced activity.

An idea evoked by some experience;

The fact or process of doing something, typically to achieve an aim

Something done, felt, or thought in response to a situation or event

A thing done; an act

A chemical process in which substances act mutually on each other and are changed into different substances, or one substance changes into other substances

The way in which something works or moves

A force exerted in opposition to an applied force

Armed conflict

A response to a stimulus.

Legal proceedings; a lawsuit

The state resulting from such a response.

Take action on; deal with

A reverse or opposing action.

The state or process of acting or doing

A tendency to revert to a former state.

Something that is done or accomplished; a deed. See Usage Note at act.

Opposition to progress or liberalism; extreme conservatism.

Organized activity to accomplish an objective

(Chemistry) A change or transformation in which a substance decomposes, combines with other substances, or interchanges constituents with other substances.

Habitual or vigorous activity; energy

(Physics) A nuclear reaction.

Often actions Behavior or conduct.

(Physics) An equal and opposite force exerted by a body against another body that is exerting a force on it.

(Law) A proceeding brought before a court to obtain relief; a lawsuit.

The response of cells or tissues to an antigen, as in a test for immunization.

Armed encounter; combat

An action or statement in response to a stimulus or other event.

An engagement between troops or ships

(chemistry) A transformation in which one or more substances is converted into another by combination or decomposition.

The most important or exciting work or activity in a specific field or area

(politics) Reactionary politics; a period in which reactionary thought or politics is resurgent or dominant.

A movement or a series of movements, as of an actor.

(internet) An icon or emoji appended to a posted message by a user to express their feeling about it.

Manner of movement

Any action in resisting other action or force; counter tendency; movement in a contrary direction; reverse action.

The appearance of animation of a figure in painting or sculpture.

The mutual or reciprocal action of chemical agents upon each other, or the action upon such chemical agents of some form of energy, as heat, light, or electricity, resulting in a chemical change in one or more of these agents, with the production of new compounds or the manifestation of distinctive characters. See Blowpipe reaction, Flame reaction, under Blowpipe, and Flame.

The series of events and episodes that form the plot of a story or play

An action induced by vital resistance to some other action; depression or exhaustion of vital force consequent on overexertion or overstimulation; heightened activity and overaction succeeding depression or shock.

A series or number of fast-moving, exciting, or dangerous events, especially in a movie

The force which a body subjected to the action of a force from another body exerts upon the latter body in the opposite direction.

The operating parts of a mechanism.

Backward tendency or movement after revolution, reform, or great progress in any direction.

The manner in which such parts operate.

A regular or characteristic response to a stimulation of the nerves.

The manner in which a musical instrument can be played; playability

An action by a person or people in response to an event. The reaction may be primarily mental (" a reaction of surprise") but is usually manifested by some activity.

The effort of performing or doing something.

A response that reveals a person's feelings or attitude;

Something done, often so as to accomplish a purpose.

A bodily process occurring due to the effect of some foregoing stimulus or agent;

A way of motion or functioning.

(chemistry) a process in which one or more substances are changed into others;

The way in which a mechanical device acts when used; especially a firearm.

Doing something in opposition to another way of doing it that you don't like;

(music) The mechanism, that is the set of moving mechanical parts, of a keyboard instrument, like a piano, which transfers the motion of the key to the sound-making device.

Extreme conservatism in political or social matters;

The distance separating the strings and the fretboard on a guitar or other string instrument.

(mechanics) the equal and opposite force that is produced when any force is applied to a body;

(military) Combat.

(legal) A charge or other process in a law court (also called lawsuit and actio).

(mathematics) A mapping from a pairing of mathematical objects to one of them, respecting their individual structures. The pairing is typically a Cartesian product or a tensor product. The object that is not part of the output is said to act on the other object. In any given context, action is used as an abbreviation for a more fully named notion, like group action or left group action.

(physics) The product of energy and time, especially the product of the Lagrangian and time.

The event or connected series of events, either real or imaginary, forming the subject of a play, poem, or other composition; the unfolding of the drama of events.

The attitude or position of the several parts of the body as expressive of the sentiment or passion depicted.

(bowling) spin put on the bowling ball.

(obsolete) A share in the capital stock of a joint-stock company, or in the public funds.

(religion) A religious performance or solemn function, i.e. action sermon, a sacramental sermon in the Scots Presbyterian Church.

(science) a process existing in or produced by nature (rather than by the intent of human beings).

Demanding or signifying the start of something, usually a performance.

(Manglish) arrogant

To act on a request etc, in order to put it into effect.

To initiate a legal action against someone.

A process or condition of acting or moving, as opposed to rest; the doing of something; exertion of power or force, as when one body acts on another; the effect of power exerted on one body by another; agency; activity; operation; as, the action of heat; a man of action.

An act; a thing done; a deed; an enterprise. (pl.): Habitual deeds; hence, conduct; behavior; demeanor.

The event or connected series of events, either real or imaginary, forming the subject of a play, poem, or other composition; the unfolding of the drama of events.

Movement; as, the horse has a spirited action.

Any one of the active processes going on in an organism; the performance of a function; as, the action of the heart, the muscles, or the gastric juice.

Gesticulation; the external deportment of the speaker, or the suiting of his attitude, voice, gestures, and countenance, to the subject, or to the feelings.

The attitude or position of the several parts of the body as expressive of the sentiment or passion depicted.

A suit or process, by which a demand is made of a right in a court of justice; in a broad sense, a judicial proceeding for the enforcement or protection of a right, the redress or prevention of a wrong, or the punishment of a public offense.

A share in the capital stock of a joint-stock company, or in the public funds; hence, in the plural, equivalent to stocks.

An engagement between troops in war, whether on land or water; a battle; a fight; as, a general action, a partial action.

The mechanical contrivance by means of which the impulse of the player's finger is transmitted to the strings of a pianoforte or to the valve of an organ pipe.

Something done (usually as opposed to something said);

The state of being active;

A judicial proceeding brought by one party against another; one party prosecutes another for a wrong done or for protection of a right or for prevention of a wrong

An act by a government body or supranational organization;

A military engagement;

A process existing in or produced by nature (rather than by the intent of human beings);

The series of events that form a plot;

The operating part that transmits power to a mechanism;

The trait of being active and energetic and forceful;

The most important or interesting work or activity in a specific area or field;

Institute legal proceedings against; file a suit against;

Put in effect;

Most actions are intentional as they involve a decision-making process, but reflex actions like sneezing are also considered actions, though involuntary.

An example of a reaction is feeling sore after your first day of exercise.

In physics, actions and reactions are described by Newton's third law, stating that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Some reactions, especially emotional or instinctual responses, are less controllable, whereas responses to some situations can be managed with conscious effort.

An example of an action is deciding to start a diet or exercise program.

A person's reaction can be influenced by their past experiences, temperament, and the context of the situation.

Actions are fundamental to behavior as they are the expressions of decisions and intentions.

Reactions are crucial in communication as they provide feedback and can determine the direction of a conversation.

Yes, reactions often influence future actions, especially in ongoing interactions or processes.

In emotional and social contexts, the proportionality of reactions can vary widely, but in physics, reactions are typically proportional to actions.

Understanding this dynamic can improve interpersonal skills and aid in predicting outcomes in various scenarios.

In most contexts, especially physical and interpersonal, actions inevitably lead to reactions.

Actions affect relationships through the intentions and effects they convey, which can either strengthen or weaken bonds.

Reactions can reflect personal differences in emotional responses, tolerance, and perspective.

Reactions can be emotional, physical, or both, depending on the context and the nature of the stimulus.