impulse

strong

irresistible

first, original

When she saw the spider, her first impulse was to scream loudly.

sudden

basic

instinctual, natural

repressed

conflicting, contradictory, contrary

aggressive, violent

creative

sexual

feel, have

He had a strong impulse to call his friend after seeing the old photograph.

be subject to

My teenage son is subject to sudden impulses to spend all his pocket money on video games.

be driven by

check, control, deny, fight (back/down), resist, restrain, stifle, suppress

She had to restrain her impulse to laugh during the serious business meeting.

give in to, obey, yield to

He yielded to an impulse to call his old friend after ten years of silence.

act on

She acted on impulse and bought the expensive jacket without checking her bank account first.

buy sth on

She bought the expensive handbag on impulse and regretted it the next day.

arise

A sudden urge to call an old friend arose during the movie last night.

buy, purchase

I saw those shoes online and made an impulse purchase without checking the price first.

buying

buyer

on (an) ~

She decided to book a flight to Paris on impulse without planning anything in advance.

~ towards

Children often have a strong impulse towards asking questions about everything they see.

electrical, nerve/nervous

transmit

My first impulse was to buy the expensive shoes, but I resisted and left the store.

convert sth into, transform sth into

When you touch the screen, it transforms your finger movement into electrical impulses.

positive

political, social

lead (sb/sth) to sth, prompt (sb/sth to sth)

A sudden impulse led him to quit his job and travel around the world.

~ behind

She finally understood the impulse behind her friend's sudden decision to move abroad.

~ for

She felt a sudden impulse for adventure and booked a ticket to travel across South America.

~ toward

She felt a sudden impulse toward checking her phone every few minutes during the meeting.