Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Recoil \Re*coil"\, n.
1. A starting or falling back; a rebound; a shrinking; as,
the recoil of nature, or of the blood.
2. The state or condition of having recoiled.
The recoil from formalism is skepticism. --F. W.
Robertson.
3. Specifically, the reaction or rebounding of a firearm when
discharged.
{Recoil dynamometer} (Gunnery), an instrument for measuring
the force of the recoil of a firearm.
{Recoil escapement} See the Note under {Escapement}.