spasm
n.a sudden, short, and often painful muscle contraction that you cannot control. It can also describe a sudden, short burst of activity or emotion.
n.a sudden, involuntary, and often painful contraction of a muscle or group of muscles. In a figurative sense, it refers to a sudden, brief, and intense burst of activity or emotion.
“He suffered from a sudden muscle spasm in his leg.”
“The sudden spasm of the engine caused the car to stall on the highway.”
“The sudden spasm of the crowd's applause was followed by a long, uncomfortable silence as the speaker realized his mistake.”
“She took a break from performing, later describing how the condition meant she had suffered muscle spasms so strong that her ribs were broken as a result.”
From Middle English spasme, from Old French spasme, from Latin spasmus, from Ancient Greek σπασμός (spasmós, “spasm, convulsion”), from σπάω (spáō, “to draw out, pull out”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.