as in throbs
to expand and contract in a rhythmic manner
the man's heart began to palpitate, and he feared another attack was coming on
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for palpitates
Verb
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My boredom typically spurs feelings of frustration, guilt, shame—and long nutritionless spells of goggling, slack-jawed, at celebrity news on my phone while the world throbs around me.—
Daniel Smith,
The Atlantic,
27 Feb. 2026 -
Pain that is not a word throbs in his shoulders, awakens him each morning.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The race is won by the team that beats their handicap speed by the greatest margin.—
Patrick Connolly,
The Orlando Sentinel,
20 June 2026
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The infant’s heart beats into the night, like the thumping of a little giant, breaking rocks deep in the Mines of Moria.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 June 2026
Verb
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Nevertheless, Bonnie’s doting parents hope that Lilypad will help Bonnie make friends, oblivious to how the gizmo — and soon, their daughter — vibrates with anxiety.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
18 June 2026
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The household hums with collective energy and vibrates with handiwork, intention, love.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
12 June 2026
Verb
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Each second, the light pulses a few hundred billion times through a fiberglass straw the width of a human hair.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 June 2026
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While the complications of the relationship between Merril and Raquel are not always terribly clear in the script, both Marquis and Adame find strong chemistry as the story pulses forward.—
David John Chávez,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Palpitates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/palpitates. Accessed 25 Jun. 2026.
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