pulsating 1 of 2

pulsating

2 of 2

verb

present participle of pulsate
as in pulsing
to expand and contract in a rhythmic manner the heart muscle pulsates regularly to pump blood

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of pulsating
Adjective
Lifepro's Rumblex has three powerful motors for oscillating, pulsating and lateral vibrations. — ABC News, 19 Sep. 2026 Vinícius Júnior scored an equalizing goal in the 32nd minute, giving five-time champion Brazil a 1-1 draw against Morocco on Saturday in a pulsating, high-profile group match at the World Cup. — CBS News, 13 June 2026 To experience the city’s culture at its most pulsating, visit during the annual Carnaval de Limón in October. — Lydia Price, Travel + Leisure, 18 Dec. 2025 The relentlessly pulsating tempo of the record is tailor-made for the most full-throttle parts of 5SOS’ live show. — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
Verb
What is harder to summon from this distance is the pulsating chaos of that day, hour by hour. — Ann Gerhart, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2026 An ominous, pulsating soundtrack begins to play as the camera pulls away to reveal the living room of the beachside home and the infant in a bouncy chair. — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 8 Sep. 2026 Not Netflix‘s The Whisper Man, though, which doesn’t need the extra time and sails by in under two hours as a movie in a pulsating pace that keeps us engaged and guessing from beginning to end. — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 27 Aug. 2026 In the clip, Norwood signals the engineer before launching into a performance of the theme, which captures the songstress delivering impassioned vocals over a pulsating instrumental. — Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 11 Aug. 2026 That might not sound that exciting, but in low lighting, the massive illuminated tanks of pulsating jellies feel like a mesmerizing alien art exhibit. — Jessica Kozuka, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 2026 A day after Argentina’s pulsating 3-1 win over Switzerland in a World Cup quarterfinal match in Kansas City, a couple of the victorious team’s fans needed to wind down. — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 15 July 2026 The hotel scene in Rome is pulsating right now, with a string of impressive new openings over the last few years, and many more to come. — Megan Rose Murray, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 July 2026 The floating electronic device generates electromagnetic fields that temporarily paralyze jellyfish within range by targeting their pulsating locomotion. — New Atlas, 30 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pulsating
Adjective
  • After recent forays into darkly psychedelic drone music, the Mexican American producer returns to the dancefloor with an album that fuses techno and guaracha into a throbbing polyrhythmic juggernaut.
    — Andrew Ryce, Pitchfork, 1 July 2026
  • The throbbing track is named for the New York nightclub where Madonna and Mazar met more than four decades ago.
    — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 6 June 2026
Verb
  • The title track is dark, pulsing dance pop, indebted, in obvious ways, to the trickle-down influence of Madonna, particularly via Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, and Dua Lipa.
    — Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Her latest book is an ode to the artist Eva Hesse — and a pulsing meditation on identity.
    — Tiffany Kelly, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Sep. 2026
Adjective
  • Relevant, heart-palpitating, thoughtful, emotional, tense, thrilling, devastating and joyful.
    — Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 4 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • Although made of natural materials, these early instruments were played by vibrating the lips to send air into and through a hollow opening—the defining characteristic of a brass instrument.
    — Kara Rogers, Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Accessibility There are several accessible guest rooms in the hotel—these have step-free showers, assistance alarms, grab bars, and visual, sound and vibrating alarm systems.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Nigeria is on track to complete a 90,000 km fiber optic cable network in three years, a government minister said, beating an initial timeline for the project backed by the World Bank and the African Development Bank.
    — Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • OpenAI earlier this month released GPT-6 Astra, which has sometimes been modestly beating Opus 5 in benchmarks and user sentiment.
    — Samuel Axon, ArsTechnica, 22 Sep. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pulsating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pulsating. Accessed 28 Sep. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster