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IMPETUOUS
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Characterized by undue haste and lack of thought or deliberation
Example:
madcap escapades
Synonyms:
brainish; hotheaded; impetuous; impulsive; madcap; tearaway
Classified under:
Similar:
incautious (lacking in caution)
Domain usage:
archaicism; archaism (the use of an archaic expression)
Derivation:
impetuosity; impetuousness (rash impulsiveness)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Marked by violent force
Example:
impetuous heaving waves
Classified under:
Similar:
forceful (characterized by or full of force or strength (often but not necessarily physical))
Context examples:
Meg spoke seriously and expected to see Laurie frown or laugh, but he did neither, for after a quick look at her, he said, in his impetuous way, I like that!
(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)
Elinor encouraged her as much as possible to talk of what she felt; and before breakfast was ready, they had gone through the subject again and again; and with the same steady conviction and affectionate counsel on Elinor's side, the same impetuous feelings and varying opinions on Marianne's, as before.
(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)
The heat into which he has been continually putting himself; and the distracted and impetuous manner in which he has been diving, day and night, among papers and books; to say nothing of the immense number of letters he has written me between this house and Mr. Wickfield's, and often across the table when he has been sitting opposite, and might much more easily have spoken; is quite extraordinary.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
Lastly, I saw Mr. Mason was submissive to Mr. Rochester; that the impetuous will of the latter held complete sway over the inertness of the former: the few words which had passed between them assured me of this.
(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)
While Jo trudged beside him, feeling as if her place had always been there, and wondering how she ever could have chosen any other lot. Of course, she was the first to speak—intelligibly, I mean, for the emotional remarks which followed her impetuous Oh, yes! were not of a coherent or reportable character.
(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)
It was very interesting to me to see them together, not only on account of their mutual affection, but because of the strong personal resemblance between them, and the manner in which what was haughty or impetuous in him was softened by age and sex, in her, to a gracious dignity.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
I saw plainly how you would look; and heard your impetuous republican answers, and your haughty disavowal of any necessity on your part to augment your wealth, or elevate your standing, by marrying either a purse or a coronet.
(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)
