pulsate
Americanverb (used without object)
-
pulsates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
pulsated,
past participle, past
-
pulsating
present participle
-
to expand and contract rhythmically, as the heart; beat; throb.
- Synonyms:
- pulse
-
to vibrate; quiver.
verb
-
to expand and contract with a rhythmic beat; throb
-
physics to vary in intensity, magnitude, size, etc
the current was pulsating
-
to quiver or vibrate
Synonym Usage
Pulsate, beat, palpitate, throb refer to the recurrent vibratory movement of the heart, the pulse, etc. To pulsate is to move in a definite rhythm, temporarily or for a longer duration: Blood pulsates in the arteries. To beat is to repeat a vibration or pulsation regularly for some time: One's heart beats many times a minute. To palpitate is to beat at a rapid rate, often producing a flutter: to palpitate with excitement. To throb is to beat with an unusual force that is often associated with pain or heightened emotion or sensation: to throb with terror.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
pulsatesimple
-
pulsatessimple
-
have pulsatedperfect
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has pulsatedperfect
-
am pulsatingprogressive
-
are pulsatingprogressive
-
is pulsatingprogressive
-
have been pulsatingperfect progressive
-
has been pulsatingperfect progressive
Past
-
pulsatedsimple
-
had pulsatedperfect
-
was pulsatingprogressive
-
were pulsatingprogressive
-
had been pulsatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pulsate
1785–95; < Latin pulsātus, past participle of pulsāre to batter, strike, make (strings) vibrate. See pulse 1, -ate 1
Explanation
Things that pulsate throb with a regular, rhythmic beat — like the piped-in music at a trendy discotheque. Music can pulsate, electromagnetic waves can pulsate, and your head can pulsate when you have a splitting headache. When someone takes your pulse by placing fingers on the inside of your wrist or on your neck, they're counting your heartbeats by feeling the blood pulsate through your arteries.
Vocabulary lists containing pulsate
Dear Martin
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
We sense that everything is equally important; nothing enjoys pride of place; there’s no room where the architectural energy starts to pulsate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
When a lower-mass star reaches the point where nuclear reactions in its core can no longer support it, the star becomes unstable and begins to pulsate.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 12, 2026
They tore through cornfields like earthbound locusts, making the stalks pulsate as if buffeted by a strong wind.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 8, 2023
The director allows her protagonist’s pain to protract and pulsate without narrative fuss; even scenes of turmoil unspool with a deliberate delicacy.
From New York Times ● Mar. 23, 2023
His eyes bulged, and blood vessels in his throat began to pulsate, until at length I lowered the jug.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
If the joy of running is missing from Ms. Cain’s book, it pulsates through Martin Dugard’s “The Long Run.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
Yet few would deny that something dark and eerie pulsates just below the balmy surface of the city of Angels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2024
It’s etched into the curves of the mountains, the rhythm of the ocean, the aroma of coffee and the beat of music that pulsates through the city.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 26, 2023
But the intoxicating strength of the show’s leading lady still pulsates throughout — even when, as is often the case with this concert stagings, Murphy had her book in hand for the dramatic scenes.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2023
The blue fretwork of veins in Hauptmann’s forehead pulsates.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
The arteries of the capital and other major cities pulsated with people.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 8, 2026
During the climactic moment, a giant load-in door in the upstage wall slowly rose like a curtain onto West 45th Street, which pulsated with color and life.
From New York Times ● Dec. 4, 2023
As music pulsated and his teammates, past and present, gathered at midcourt for tipoff, the former Laker sixth man and current Clipper starting point guard remained still, the only motionless person inside a sold-out arena.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 6, 2023
The residents huddled on the floor while the building’s walls pulsated and shook.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 12, 2021
Despite the dim light in the cott — it was night-start by then — the golds and reds pulsated as if the morning sun itself had slid and twisted its rays into the cloth.
From "Gathering Blue" by Lois Lowry
The restaurant’s TikTok videos carry many AI telltales, from ube pancakes slathered in pulsating purple sauce to a three-handed bartender.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
From there, another scrum, another penalty advantage, and with the All Blacks back-pedalling captain Siya Kolisi crashed over for South Africa's third try and a 10-point lead after a pulsating first 40.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
Pushing through the glass double doors, I found every inch of the restaurant pulsating with some kind of sensory experience.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
CALI, Colombia—This tropical city is known for the vibrant salsa music pulsating through its nightlife and the stately samán trees shading narrow streets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
Matty had felt this sensation—the one of pulsating power, as if he had the power of lightning within his own self—in the clearing, on a sunny day with no storm brewing.
From "Messenger" by Lois Lowry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
