involuntary
/ɪnˈvɒlənt(ə)ri
/adjective
1Done without will or conscious control: she gave an involuntary shudder...
- You may find him strident, irritating or humourless, but fact of the matter is the involuntary shudder running up your back after that line is real enough.
- I went off into a day punctuated by involuntary shudders of revulsion as the sensations were recalled.
- Thus I utter an involuntary shudder at every routinely odd noise that the computer makes.
Synonyms
reflex, reflexive, automatic, knee-jerk, mechanical, unconditioned;
spontaneous, instinctive, instinctual, impulsive, unconscious, unthinking;
unintentional, unintended, unplanned, inadvertent, uncontrolled, uncontrollable
1.1(Especially of muscles or nerves) concerned in bodily processes that are not under the control of the will.This smooth muscle is the involuntary sphincter of the posterior urethra in the male....
- The contractile activity of involuntary muscle is normally regulated by the autonomic (sympathetic and parasympathetic) nervous system.
- The involuntary muscles are controlled by structures deep within the brain and the upper part of the spinal cord called the brain stem.
2Done against someone’s will; compulsory: a policy of involuntary repatriation...
- The Iranian government, until now, has refused to accept their return as part of a general policy of resisting involuntary repatriations.
- It is an important matter if more people are requiring involuntary admission.
- In order to cure an epidemic there must be involuntary, mandatory and humane treatment of people who are engaged in abuse.
Synonyms
compulsory, obligatory, mandatory, forced, coerced, coercive, compelled, exacted, imposed, demanded, required, constrained, ordained, prescribed;
unwilling, unconsenting, against one's will, against one's wishes, reluctant, grudging
Derivatives
involuntariness
/ noun ...- He stated that the Stanford scales were lacking because they did not directly measure the involuntariness of a subject's behavioral responses during the routine scale administration.
- Sexual orientation's involuntariness, which is largely beyond dispute, is separate from its origin, which is still controversial, even among sympathetic scientists.
- The Crown, of course, can negative involuntariness, prove that it was a willed act, without establishing that there was in fact an intention to kill, without proving murder.