Both Uses of
recoil
in
Hard Times
- As he recoiled, looking down at it, it raised itself up into the form of a woman in a sitting attitude.†
Chpt 1.10 *
- Mr. Gradgrind and Sissy, who were both before him while his sister yet clung to his shoulder, stopped and recoiled.†
Chpt 3.7
Definition:
-
(recoil) to move backward suddenly (sometimes figuratively)especially:
- the backward jerk of a gun or cannon when it is fired
- when a person flinches (suddenly draws back) from someone or something, as with fear, disgust, or pain
- when a person is emotionally repulsed, as by disgust
- when something intended to go in one direction figuratively falls back in the opposite direction; for example, a story told to hurt someone that comes back to hurt the teller