Ricochet vs. Recoil

Ricochetnoun

(military) A method of firing a projectile so that it skips along a surface.

Recoilnoun

A starting or falling back; a rebound; a shrinking.

‘the recoil of nature, or of the blood’;

Ricochetnoun

An instance of ricocheting; a glancing rebound.

Recoilnoun

The state or condition of having recoiled.

Ricochetverb

To rebound off something wildly in a seemingly random direction.

Recoilnoun

(firearms) The energy transmitted back to the shooter from a firearm which has fired. Recoil is a function of the weight of the weapon, the weight of the projectile, and the speed at which it leaves the muzzle.

Ricochetverb

(military) To operate upon by ricochet firing.

Recoilnoun

An escapement in which, after each beat, the scape-wheel recoils slightly.

Ricochetnoun

A rebound or skipping, as of a ball along the ground when a gun is fired at a low angle of elevation, or of a fiat stone thrown along the surface of water.

Recoilverb

(intransitive) To pull back, especially in disgust, horror or astonishment.

‘He recoiled in disgust when he saw the mess.’;

Ricochetverb

To operate upon by ricochet firing. See Ricochet, n.

Recoilverb

To retreat before an opponent.

Ricochetverb

To skip with a rebound or rebounds, as a flat stone on the surface of water, or a cannon ball on the ground. See Ricochet, n.

Recoilverb

To retire, withdraw.

Ricochetnoun

a glancing rebound

Recoilverb

(of a firearm) To quickly push back when fired

Ricochetverb

spring back; spring away from an impact;

‘The rubber ball bounced’; ‘These particles do not resile but they unite after they collide’;

Recoilverb

To start, roll, bound, spring, or fall back; to take a reverse motion; to be driven or forced backward; to return.

‘Evil on itself shall back recoil.’; ‘The solemnity of her demeanor made it impossible . . . that we should recoil into our ordinary spirits.’;

Ricochet

A ricochet ( RIK-ə-shay; French: [ʁikɔʃɛ]) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost as dangerous as before the deflection.

Recoilverb

To draw back, as from anything repugnant, distressing, alarming, or the like; to shrink.

Recoilverb

To turn or go back; to withdraw one's self; to retire.

Recoilverb

To draw or go back.

Recoilnoun

A starting or falling back; a rebound; a shrinking; as, the recoil of nature, or of the blood.

Recoilnoun

The state or condition of having recoiled.

‘The recoil from formalism is skepticism.’;

Recoilnoun

Specifically, the reaction or rebounding of a firearm when discharged.

Recoilnoun

the backward jerk of a gun when it is fired

Recoilnoun

a movement back from an impact

Recoilverb

draw back, as with fear or pain;

‘she flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf’;

Recoilverb

spring back; spring away from an impact;

‘The rubber ball bounced’; ‘These particles do not resile but they unite after they collide’;

Recoilverb

spring back, as from a forceful thrust;

‘The gun kicked back into my shoulder’;

Recoil

Recoil (often called knockback, kickback or simply kick) is the rearward thrust generated when a gun is being discharged. In technical terms, the recoil is a result of conservation of momentum, as according to Newton's third law the force required to accelerate something will evoke an equal but opposite reactional force, which means the forward momentum gained by the projectile and exhaust gases (ejectae) will be mathematically balanced out by an equal and opposite momentum exerted back upon the gun.