pulse - Dictionary Definition : Vocabulary.com

The word pulse has many shades of meaning, but most of them involve something characterized by short, rhythmic bursts. If you’re angry, the muscles in your jaw might pulse — meaning they contract quickly in short bursts.

Pulse can be a noun that describes the rhythmic pumping of blood through your veins and arteries. You’ve probably had a nurse take your pulse as a way to measure your heart rate. Pulse can refer to other things that have a rhythmic beat, like the pulse of dance music or a pulse of flashing light. The verb describes something that throbs, literally or figuratively. Your blood will pulse through your veins, or a busy city may pulse with life.

PRIMARY MEANINGS OF: pulse

1	n v	the rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart expand and contract rhythmically; beat rhythmically
2	n v	(electronics) a sharp transient wave in the normal electrical state (or a series of such transients) produce or modulate (as electromagnetic waves) in the form of short bursts or pulses or cause an apparatus to produce pulses
3	n	edible seeds of various pod-bearing plants (peas or beans or lentils etc.)

FULL DEFINITIONS OF: pulse

1

n the rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart

Synonyms:: beat, heartbeat, pulsation

Types:: show 4 types...; hide 4 types...; diastole
the widening of the chambers of the heart between two contractions when the chambers fill with blood; systole
the contraction of the chambers of the heart (especially the ventricles) to drive blood into the aorta and pulmonary artery; pounding, throb, throbbing
an instance of rapid strong pulsation (of the heart); extrasystole
a premature systole resulting in a momentary cardiac arrhythmia

Type of:: periodic event, recurrent event
an event that recurs at intervals

n the rate at which the heart beats; usually measured to obtain a quick evaluation of a person's health

Synonyms:: heart rate, pulse rate

Types:: femoral pulse
pulse of the femoral artery (felt in the groin); radial pulse
pulse of the radial artery (felt in the wrist)

Type of:: vital sign
sign of life; usually an indicator of a person's general physical condition; rate
a magnitude or frequency relative to a time unit

v expand and contract rhythmically; beat rhythmically

Synonyms:: pulsate, throb

: beat, pulsate, quiver
move with or as if with a regular alternating motion

Type of:: beat, pound, thump
move rhythmically

v drive by or as if by pulsation

“A soft breeze pulsed the air”

Type of:: displace, move
cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense

2

n (electronics) a sharp transient wave in the normal electrical state (or a series of such transients)

Synonyms:: impulse, pulsation, pulsing

Type of:: undulation, wave
(physics) a movement up and down or back and forth

v produce or modulate (as electromagnetic waves) in the form of short bursts or pulses or cause an apparatus to produce pulses

“pulse waves”

“a transmitter pulsed by an electronic tube”

Synonyms:: pulsate

Type of:: create, make, produce
create or manufacture a man-made product

3

n edible seeds of various pod-bearing plants (peas or beans or lentils etc.)

Type of:: legume
the seedpod of a leguminous plant (such as peas or beans or lentils)