- reaction
- noun1 responseADJECTIVE▪ extreme, strong, violent▪ favourable/favorable, positive▪ adverse, hostile, negative▪ mixed▪
The speech got a mixed reaction.
▪ angry▪ first, immediate, initial▪ delayed▪Her outburst was a delayed reaction to an unpleasant letter she'd received that morning.
▪ chain▪The change of plan set off a chain reaction of confusion.
▪ common, general, public▪ natural, normal, understandable▪His reaction is completely understandable.
▪ automatic, gut, instinctive, knee-jerk, spontaneous▪The incident calls for a measured response, avoiding knee-jerk reactions.
▪ nervous▪ emotional, visceral▪ critical▪The critical reaction to his first novel has been positive.
VERB + REACTION▪ get, have, meet with▪The play met with a mixed reaction from the critics.
▪ experience▪I believe she is experiencing a post-traumatic stress reaction.
▪ bring, cause, elicit, induce, produce, provoke, set off, spark, spark off, trigger, trigger off▪She was surprised at the reaction brought by the mention of his name.
▪ gauge, judge▪He eyed her cautiously, trying to gauge her reaction.
▪ judge by, judge from▪Judging by her reaction, she liked the present.
PREPOSITION▪ in reaction to▪There's been a drop in ticket sales in reaction to the review.
▪ reaction against▪Her rebellious attitude is just a reaction against her strict upbringing.
▪ reaction to▪the public reaction to the news
2 (usually reactions) ability to react quicklyADJECTIVE▪ fast, good, lightning, quick▪Keenan showed lightning reactions.
▪ slowVERB + REACTION▪ have▪She has very quick reactions.
▪ speed up▪ slow down▪Alcohol has the effect of slowing down your reactions.
REACTION + NOUN▪ time▪Your reaction time increases when you are tired.
3 chemical reactionADJECTIVE▪ chain▪ chemical, nuclear, thermonuclear, etc.▪ fission, fusion▪ reversibleVERB + REACTION▪ cause, initiate, produce, start, trigger▪ catalyse/catalyze (science)▪ stop▪ slow down, speed upREACTION + VERB▪ occur, take placePREPOSITION▪ during a/the reaction, in a/the reaction▪the energy given out during the reaction
▪ reaction between▪I am studying the reactions between certain gases.
▪ reaction with▪the fuel's chemical reaction with the surrounding water
4 physical reactionADJECTIVE▪ adverse, bad, severe▪ mild, slight▪ delayed▪a delayed reaction to the drugs
▪ allergic▪ inflammatoryVERB + REACTION▪ experience, have, suffer▪She had a very bad allergic reaction to the peanuts.
▪ cause, induce, producePREPOSITION▪ reaction to▪A small minority of patients suffer an adverse reaction to the treatment.
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
