impact

UK/ˈɪmpækt/US/ˈɪmpækt/

nounB12 meanings Common in everyday speech and writing · #2,573 of 15,258leans written

Other forms: impacts

An impact is the force of one thing striking another. On impact, the impact crushed it, impact resistance.

Physically it is a collision, and what matters is how quickly the energy is absorbed — which is why crumple zones and helmets work by slowing the stop. Figuratively an impact is an effect, and using impact as a verb in that sense annoys many readers. Note that the Latin means pressed against.

Definitions of impact

1nounimpactThe force of one thing striking another.B1
“The car was badly damaged by the impact of the crash.”
2nounstrongA strong effect.B1
“The new road has had a huge impact on life in the village.”

Too few real examples of this word to estimate which sense is commonest.

Also practised as

nounThe strong effect one thing has on another.

Where it comes from

Latin impactus is the participle of impingere, to strike against — in plus pangere, to fasten. Impinge comes from the same striking.

Proto-Indo-European
*peh₂ǵ-
Latin
impāctus
English, today
impact

Attested since the 17th century, from Latin impāctus.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Hitting & Pushing

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impact in the wild

Meteor Crater is a well-known example of a small impact crater on Earth.
Impact crater
Formed in a collision 80 million years ago, the Baptistina family of asteroids is thought to have caused a large spike in the impact rate.
Impact crater
A giant impact could supply this excess momentum.
Giant-impact hypothesis
An extremely energetic process, such as a giant impact, could provide this energy.
Giant-impact hypothesis
The minimum impact speed for bodies striking Earth is 11.2 km/s, the Escape velocity of the Earth.
Impact event

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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