impulse buying

noun

The act of making unplanned or otherwise spontaneous purchases.

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Meanings

nounimpulse buying (usually uncountable, plural impulse buyings)

plural impulse buyings

  1. uncountableusuallyThe act of making unplanned or otherwise spontaneous purchases.

    Often one partner is prone to impulse buyings, plunges the couple deeply into debt without evaluating their capability to pay, and in the eyes of the other partner, is generally "irresponsible" from a fiscal standpoint.

    1976, A. L. Gary, John A. Glover, Eye color, sex, and children's behavior, page 155
Cite this entry
APA

impulse buying. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/impulse%20buying

MLA

“impulse buying.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/impulse%20buying. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “impulse buying,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/impulse%20buying.

Source: impulse buying on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.