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impaction

impaction

9.3
A strong hit that makes a sudden hard contact with something
  • noun
  • /ɪmˈpækʃən/
translation icon : impacto
  • He felt the impaction as the ball struck him directly in the chest.

Examples

  • They were stunned by the impaction of their bodies against the ground during the fall.

  • The impaction of the car during the crash caused significant damage to the front end.

  • It would appear that the attempted dilation under general anesthesia resulted in the unrecognized displacement and impaction of the metallic object.

    Academic text (2009)

Synonyms

impact
vsimpaction
371 3.7

A sudden, forceful hit between two things

is sharper and stresses striking or dashing contact
blow
vsimpaction
271 2.0

A strong hit from a fist or weapon

is any forceful contact whether accidental or deliberate
bang
vsimpaction
237 1.3

A sudden loud noise from a hit or impact

is about the sharp collision itself not only the noise
collision
vsimpaction
148 3.8

A crash when two moving vehicles hit each other

is any sharp strike not only hits between moving objects
slam
vsimpaction
85 2.1

A loud noise when something hits or closes suddenly

is general sharp contact not limited to closing actions
jar
vsimpaction
20 6.9

A sudden strong shake or hit that makes you stumble

is focused on the collision rather than the after shock
wham
vsimpaction
  • Informal
15 3.6

A sudden loud sound when one thing hits another

is about forceful contact rather than just the loud sound
wallop
vsimpaction
  • Informal
11 7.0

A strong emotional effect that stays with you

is a literal sharp collision not the figurative strong effect
smash
vsimpaction
7 3.7

A violent crash that causes a loud noise and damage

is similar but is not necessarily as violently destructive
impingement
vsimpaction
8.4

A sharp hit when one thing strikes another

is the same meaning but is a different word form
jounce
vsimpaction
9.9

A sudden jolt that makes things shake

describes sharp contact rather than the resulting movement

Antonyms

39 3.7

Keeping away from something or stopping it from happening

19 1.3

A kind, calm way of treating people or animals

Compounds

fecal impaction
  • Specialized
7.9

A mass of hard stool stuck in the lower bowel that cannot be passed

How Forceful

smash
7 3.7
crash
2.3
impaction
9.3
collision
148 3.8
to bump
111 1.0
to touch
1.0
to brush
133 1.6

Surface Forms

impaction singular
impactions plural

Morphology

impaction = impact (transparent) = impact + ion

A direct nominalization of 'impact' referring to a collision or forceful contact; meaning is predictable from the base word.

Etymology

Impaction comes from the word impact, where im- means 'in' and the rest came to mean 'to strike'. So impaction can mean a sharp hit or forceful contact, which is why we use it for a strong collision or the force of a blow.