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.

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