heartbeat

noun

heart·​beat ˈhärt-ˌbēt 

1

: one complete pulsation of the heart

2

: the vital center or driving impulse

3

: a brief space of time : flash

—used chiefly in the phrase in a heartbeat

Synonyms of heartbeat

• minute
• second
• moment

Examples of heartbeat in a Sentence

The patient had a rapid heartbeat.

I'd accept a job offer from that company in a heartbeat.

Recent Examples on the Web

The game has a heartbeat that’s going to ask something of you in every situation and José’s gotten to that point. — C. Trent Rosecrans, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

There was also a reduction in the heart muscle’s ability to flex during a heartbeat — an early indicator of heart dysfunction. — Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026

Commander John Young made his fifth and final trip to space at age 50, with a heartbeat of 75 to 80 beats a minute, while first-time flier Bob Crippen, 43, had a heartbeat pulsed at 130 beats per minute. — Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Sep. 2026

Others include Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s light and sound installation Pulse Topology (2021), installed in 2023, in which visitors’ heartbeats inform the pulse of lights hanging overhead. — Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1821, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing heartbeat

• heartbeat law
• in a heartbeat

Rhymes for heartbeat

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• conceit
• concrete

Kids Definition

heartbeat

noun

heart·​beat ˈhärt-ˌbēt 

: a single contracting and expanding of the heart

Medical Definition

heartbeat

noun

heart·​beat ˈhärt-ˌbēt 

: one complete pulsation of the heart