recoiling

1. draw back, as with fear or painExamples: "she flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf"Synonyms: cringe, flinch, funk, quail, recoil, shrink, squinch, wince

2. come back to the originator of an action with an undesired effectExamples: "Your comments may backfire and cause you a lot of trouble"Synonyms: backfire, backlash, recoil

3. spring back; spring away from an impactExamples: "The rubber ball bounced"; "These particles do not resile but they unite after they collide"Synonyms: bounce, bound, rebound, recoil, resile, reverberate, ricochet, spring

4. spring back, as from a forceful thrustExamples: "The gun kicked back into my shoulder"Synonyms: kick, kick back, recoil