ˈpəlˌsāt chiefly Brit ˌ ̷ ̷ˈ ̷ ̷, usu -ād.+V intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Latin pulsatus, past participle of pulsare to beat, strike — more at push
1. : to exhibit a pulse : beat
an artery pulsates
2. : to throb or move rhythmically : vibrate especially with life, activity, feeling
a pulsating population which expands and contracts with changes in religious beliefs — M.D.Brockie
behind every line … pulsate the rhythms of the authors' hatred or contempt or scorn — L.O.Coxe
the country is alive and pulsating with beauty — Alice Duncan-Kemp
the river breeze pulsated warmly upward — Harriet La Barre
Synonyms:
pulse , beat , throb , palpitate : pulsate suggests a rhythmic regular movement, typically that of the heart in alternate dilation and constriction
the heart pulsating
a motor pulsating
It is often used figuratively in reference to healthy or vigorous action or inspiration
great effort pulsating from the heart of this small island — Sir Winston Churchill
pulse applies to what flows or is thought of as flowing in a regular spurting rhythm
through the tensed veins on his forehead the blood could be seen to pulse in nervous, stacatto bounds — Donn Byrne
a small fountain pulsed in the court — Harry Sylvester
her excitement, that pulsed with interest and curiosity — Robert Hichens
beat is a nontechnical term for pulse or pulsate; it often applies to rhythmic motion with an audible effect
the beating of the patient's heart
drums beating
throb indicates strong pulsation, often abnormally strong, sometimes as though caused and accompanied by passion or agitation
the planes' motors throbbed steadily, powerfully, on the field — Kay Boyle
western Christendom throbbed to the news of the French Revolution — Stringfellow Barr
the love which fills the letter, which throbs and burns in it, which speaks and argues in it — H.O.Taylor
palpitate applies to rapid throbbing or vibrating, sometimes quivering or fluttering
planet-ridden space, filled with the ether, palpitating with strange vibrations, like light and heat and wireless — W.E.Swinton
the worshiper, palpitating emotionally after the performance of some anthem — A.T.Davison