throb
Americanverb (used without object)
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throbs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
throbbed,
past participle, past
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throbbing
present participle
noun
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throbs
plural
-
the act of throbbing.
-
a violent beat or pulsation, as of the heart.
-
any pulsation or vibration.
the throb of engines.
verb
-
to pulsate or beat repeatedly, esp with increased force
to throb with pain
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(of engines, drums, etc) to have a strong rhythmic vibration or beat
noun
Synonym Usage
See pulsate.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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throbsimple
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throbssimple
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have throbbedperfect
-
has throbbedperfect
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am throbbingprogressive
-
are throbbingprogressive
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is throbbingprogressive
-
have been throbbingperfect progressive
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has been throbbingperfect progressive
Past
-
throbbedsimple
-
had throbbedperfect
-
was throbbingprogressive
-
were throbbingprogressive
-
had been throbbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of throb
First recorded in 1325–75; unattested Middle English throbben, implied in present participle throbbant “throbbing”; further origin unknown
Explanation
Things that throb have a strong, regular pulse or rhythm. Loud music with a heavy beat or bass line can seem to throb inside your head — especially if your downstairs neighbors are playing it while you're trying to sleep. Your heartbeat throbs especially fast when you're upset or just after you've been running, and something painful can throb too, like the ache of a stubbed toe. No one's exactly sure where the word throb comes from — most experts guess that it originated as a representation of the sound and feeling of your pulse.
Vocabulary lists containing throb
That Hurts! Synonyms for "Pain"
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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:
The braggadocious “Helicopter” has a piercing throb like a car alarm, while “Stole Ya Flow”—a diss track apparently addressed to Drake—has a curling and distorted drone winding through it, a rattlesnake-like warning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
Emma was about 11 when her legs started to feel heavy and throb and said they started to grow bigger.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2025
Your eyes might begin to water, your head to throb and headlines in today’s newspapers to overwhelm your thoughts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2023
It opens with a subterranean bass throb and a declaration of vulnerability in “Nothing Left to Lose,” as Thorn sings, “I need a thicker skin/This pain keeps getting in.”
From New York Times ● Mar. 24, 2023
As I near my hut, the stench and heat overwhelm me, causing my temples to throb.
From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung
The production, co-created and directed by Moisés Kaufman, throbs with lip-synchable pop hits of such eclectic range that the dance club energy eventually ensnares everybody.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2024
A radio throbs with Bob Marley in a park where German officer once resided in the surrounding townhouses.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 21, 2023
Such waves can be detected in the way the star’s light pulses and throbs.
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 13, 2023
My heart throbs in my jaw: so close.
From Slate ● Apr. 29, 2023
There’s a thump in my head now, like I can hear my poisoned blood pumping, and everything in the world throbs with it.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
On a recent Thursday night, the high-ceilinged room throbbed with what felt like pre-Covid energy.
From New York Times ● Jul. 14, 2022
“Get Back” throbbed with the pent-up energy of both the Beatles in Jackson’s doc and McCartney and his guys after an unwelcome break from the road.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2022
In late afternoon, the wind throbbed at 28 mph and gusted to 39 mph.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 1, 2022
She woke up the next morning in hospital with a small pinprick on her hand, which later bruised and throbbed, she said.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2021
My stomach burned with hunger and my head throbbed.
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
That moment came in 2008, with a crash and a long, throbbing hangover.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026
The song holds next to none of the grinding desire throbbing through most of The Artist’s oeuvre.
From Salon ● Feb. 14, 2026
He is a throbbing mass of malevolence, turned up — to reference Reiner’s “This Is Spinal Tap” — to 11.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2025
Following the Maytals’ 1968 hit “Do the Reggay,” with its choppy beat, steady rhythm guitar, throbbing bass and wailing horns, Mr. Cliff wrote songs that expressed social and personal themes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 24, 2025
The stench of their breath and body odor was almost enough to knock him out, even without the arrow throbbing in his arm.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
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.
