pulse

[ puhls ]

/ pʌls /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: pulse / pulsed / pulses / pulsing on Thesaurus.com

noun

the regular throbbing of the arteries, caused by the successive contractions of the heart, especially as may be felt at an artery, as at the wrist.

a single pulsation, or beat or throb, of the arteries or heart.

the rhythmic recurrence of strokes, vibrations, or undulations.

a single stroke, vibration, or undulation.

Electricity. a momentary, sudden fluctuation in an electrical quantity, as in voltage or current.

Physics. a single, abrupt emission of particles or radiation.

a throb of life, emotion, etc.

vitality.

the general attitude, sentiment, preference, etc., as of the public.

verb (used without object), pulsed, puls·ing.

to beat or throb; pulsate.

to beat, vibrate, or undulate.

Physics. to emit particles or radiation periodically in short bursts.

verb (used with object), pulsed, puls·ing.

to cause to pulse.

Medicine/Medical. to administer (medication) in interrupted, often concentrated dosages to avoid unwanted side effects.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of pulse

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English pous(e), puls(e), from Old French pous, pulse, and Latin pulsus “a beat, stroke, throb,” noun use of past participle of pellere “to push, drive, strike”

OTHER WORDS FROM pulse

un·puls·ing, adjective

Other definitions for pulse (2 of 2)

pulse²

[ puhls ]

/ pʌls /

noun

the edible seeds of certain leguminous plants, as peas, beans, or lentils.

a plant producing such seeds.

Origin of pulse

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English puls, pols, from Old French pous, pouls, pols, from Latin puls “porridge; thick pap of meal”; see also poultice

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pulse in a sentence

This holiday season more than ever, marketers need to keep a hand firmly on the pulse of their market and opportunities.
Five SEO tips to dominate local search this holiday season|Jim Yu|November 20, 2020|Search Engine Watch
Then, a pulse from an infrared laser heated the ice, forming liquid water under high pressure.
Supercooled water has been caught morphing between two forms|Emily Conover|November 19, 2020|Science News
That pulse of volcanism may also have led to a major shift in plant life in the region.
How massive long-necked dinosaurs rose to rule the Jurassic herbivores|Carolyn Gramling|November 18, 2020|Science News
Any time I drink any alcohol at all, my deep sleep almost completely disappears, I don’t sleep as long, my pulse rate goes up.
How to Succeed by Being Authentic (Hint: Carefully) (Ep. 438)|Stephen J. Dubner|November 5, 2020|Freakonomics

These pulses last less than five milliseconds but release more energy than the sun does in days or weeks.
We just found a source for one of the most mysterious phenomena in astronomy|Neel Patel|November 4, 2020|MIT Technology Review
There are no pulsing lights, no computer-generated rock music, no pictures of 007.
‘Asteroids’ & The Dawn of the Gamer Age|David Owen|November 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One nurse pushed her hip alarm and the pulsing shriek rang out again.
Inside a Hospital for the Criminally Insane|Caitlin Dickson|September 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The bugs are so loud that stepping into the darkness feels like being surrounded by an enormous, pulsing heart.
An Author at Home in Lonely Landscapes|Letitia Trent|July 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Where there had been that tiny pulsing, there was nothing at all.
Charged With Murder for a Miscarriage in Oklahoma|Michael Daly|June 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The pulsing sound from their tsokais (African rattles) and bells join the African beat blasting from a nearby silver MacBook.
Hallucinating Away a Heroin Addiction|Abby Haglage|May 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She was pulsing with life, as a bird drunken with the air's sweetness sings itself into an abandonment of motion.
You Never Know Your Luck, Complete|Gilbert Parker
It was dark outside his windows, but a glow above the walls across the skyway told of the city pulsing and murmuring beyond.
Security|Poul William Anderson
As it turned upon its axis, it emitted a strange pulsing light.
Hunters Out of Space|Joseph Everidge Kelleam
He felt his arms pressing outward the fierce talons that sought to grasp him, his hands straining against the pulsing throat.
Mountain|Clement Wood
On his chest was a pulsing darkness, a black flame, a dark heart, shimmering with the indistinctness of absolute shadow.
The Jewels of Aptor|Samuel R. Delany

British Dictionary definitions for pulse (1 of 2)

pulse¹

/ (pʌls) /

noun

physiol

the rhythmic contraction and expansion of an artery at each beat of the heart, often discernible to the touch at points such as the wrists
a single pulsation of the heart or arteries

physics electronics

a transient sharp change in voltage, current, or some other quantity normally constant in a system
one of a series of such transient disturbances, usually recurring at regular intervals and having a characteristic geometric shape
(as modifier)a pulse generator Less common name: impulse

a recurrent rhythmic series of beats, waves, vibrations, etc
any single beat, wave, etc, in such a series

bustle, vitality, or excitementthe pulse of a city

the feelings or thoughts of a group or society as they can be measuredthe pulse of the voters

keep one's finger on the pulse to be well-informed about current events

verb

(intr) to beat, throb, or vibrate

(tr) to provide an electronic pulse to operate (a slide projector)

Derived forms of pulse

pulseless, adjective

Word Origin for pulse

C14 pous, from Latin pulsus a beating, from pellere to beat

British Dictionary definitions for pulse (2 of 2)

pulse²

/ (pʌls) /

noun

the edible seeds of any of several leguminous plants, such as peas, beans, and lentils

the plant producing any of these seeds

Word Origin for pulse

C13 pols, from Old French, from Latin puls pottage of pulse

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for pulse

pulse

[ pŭls ]

The rhythmic expansion and contraction of the arteries as blood is pumped through them by the heart. The pulse can be felt at several parts of the body, as over the carotid and radial arteries.

A dose of a medication or other substance given over a short period of time, usually repetitively.

A brief sudden change in a normally constant quantity, such as an electric current or field.
Any of a series of intermittent occurrences characterized by a brief sudden change in a quantity.

Other Idioms and Phrases with pulse

pulse

see take the pulse of.

pulse

Origin of pulse

OTHER WORDS FROM pulse

Other definitions for pulse (2 of 2)

Origin of pulse

Words related to pulse

How to use pulse in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pulse (1 of 2)

Derived forms of pulse

Word Origin for pulse

British Dictionary definitions for pulse (2 of 2)

Word Origin for pulse

Scientific definitions for pulse

Other Idioms and Phrases with pulse