pitter-patters

verb

present tense third-person singular of pitter-patter
as in throbs
to expand and contract in a rhythmic manner his heart pitter-pattered with excitement as he waited for the right moment to propose

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pitter-patters
  1. throbs
  2. beats
  3. vibrates
  4. pulses
Verb
  • The first is pique, a sharp, vinegary hot sauce that throbs with the heat of Thai chiles.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2026
  • The depression is a gritty-slick coating that constantly throbs against my thoughts and my insides.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 July 2026
Definition of throbs
Verb
  • While electric razors can get the job done quickly, for many, nothing beats a proper shave with a blade.
    — BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Depth in one high-value workflow beats a shallow deployment across 10.
    — Boyan Wan, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of beats
Verb
  • This painstakingly restored 4K version looks and sounds gorgeous; cinematographer Dante Spinotti’s work glows with saturated vibrancy, and Michel Rubini and the Reds’ score vibrates on a spooky synth frequency.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 29 July 2026
  • When the patch vibrates, that movement creates an electrical signal.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of vibrates
Verb
  • The top also features a power button, a Wi-Fi indicator, and an LED indicator that pulses green during charging, shines solid green when the battery is fully charged, or blue when the battery is running low.
    — John R. Delaney, PC Magazine, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Wearables use temperature sensors, accelerometers, light sensors and photoplethysmography (PPG), which pulses light through the skin to measure blood flow, heart rate and approximate blood oxygen.
    — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 31 July 2026
Definition of pulses
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

pitter-pattering
pitter-patters
pitting
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pitter-patters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pitter-patters. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All