as in throbs
a rhythmic expanding and contracting
his resting pulse rate is much lower than that of most men his age
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in beats
to expand and contract in a rhythmic manner
blood vessels pulsing in time with the heartbeat
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pulses
Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026
There’s a system on a computer chip that controls the process, which works in conjunction with low-emissivity glass coatings that allow for electrical pulses.
—Andrew P. Collins, The Drive, 8 Jan. 2026
Chicago might have already hit its first deep freeze, but the local classical music scene pulses with life this season.
—Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 6 Jan. 2026
By relying primarily on the rising edges of optical pulses, the system is robust against pulse-width variations caused by LED response characteristics, a phenomenon known as data-dependent pulse width shrinkage, as per the release.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
There was nothing to set pulses racing.
—James Pearce, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2026
Gut Health Benefits From Prebiotics Resistant starch is a fiber found in beans and pulses (peas).
—Barbie Cervoni, Verywell Health, 31 Dec. 2025
Cartagena’s rich Afro-Colombian heritage pulses through its art, festivals, and everyday life, offering Black women travelers a meaningful way to connect with the region’s cultural legacy.
—Essence, 7 Nov. 2025
Vivid memories of countless nights spent watching bad cult movies with my childhood friends flooded my mind, accompanied by the energetic drum machine pulses and synthesizer melodies of famed B-movie composer Chuck Cirino’s score for Deathstalker II.
—Bear McCreary, HollywoodReporter, 7 Nov. 2025
Essence, 7 Nov. 2025
The city pulses with ambition—as Education City hums with global ideas, and Katara hosts opera under the stars.
—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
The Watson household, once shadowed by loss, now pulses with both memory and possibility.
—Ashley Vega, People.com, 2 Sep. 2025
His hip-hop bonafides emerge halfway through on his second verse, and his memorable lines add another element to an earworm single that still pulses with energy and soul.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 29 Aug. 2025
The larger stretch of South Broadway counts a lot of vital music venues — HQ (formerly 3 Kings Tavern), the Skylark, the Roxy Broadway, Gothic Theatre, Swallow Hill Music and more — but the corner of South Broadway and Ellsworth still pulses with an energy that can’t be duplicated anywhere else.
—The Know, Denver Post, 15 Aug. 2025
That culture still pulses through basements and backrooms across the boroughs.
—Amy Harclerode, New York Daily News, 8 Aug. 2025
Game day weekends in Charlotte are electric; the city pulses to the beat of the Panthers fans’ energy.
—Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 8 Aug. 2025
Noun
Others take on last-minute babysitting gigs for friends and feel their pulses quicken when someone calls in distress—reactions that might look, to the untrained eye, like ordinary kindness.
—Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026
There’s a system on a computer chip that controls the process, which works in conjunction with low-emissivity glass coatings that allow for electrical pulses.
—Andrew P. Collins, The Drive, 8 Jan. 2026
Chicago might have already hit its first deep freeze, but the local classical music scene pulses with life this season.
—Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 6 Jan. 2026
By relying primarily on the rising edges of optical pulses, the system is robust against pulse-width variations caused by LED response characteristics, a phenomenon known as data-dependent pulse width shrinkage, as per the release.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
There was nothing to set pulses racing.
—James Pearce, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2026
Gut Health Benefits From Prebiotics Resistant starch is a fiber found in beans and pulses (peas).
—Barbie Cervoni, Verywell Health, 31 Dec. 2025
Cartagena’s rich Afro-Colombian heritage pulses through its art, festivals, and everyday life, offering Black women travelers a meaningful way to connect with the region’s cultural legacy.
—Essence, 7 Nov. 2025
Vivid memories of countless nights spent watching bad cult movies with my childhood friends flooded my mind, accompanied by the energetic drum machine pulses and synthesizer melodies of famed B-movie composer Chuck Cirino’s score for Deathstalker II.
—Bear McCreary, HollywoodReporter, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
The city pulses with creativity, from its interactive street art to its world-class museums.
—Essence, 7 Nov. 2025
The city pulses with ambition—as Education City hums with global ideas, and Katara hosts opera under the stars.
—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
The Watson household, once shadowed by loss, now pulses with both memory and possibility.
—Ashley Vega, People.com, 2 Sep. 2025
His hip-hop bonafides emerge halfway through on his second verse, and his memorable lines add another element to an earworm single that still pulses with energy and soul.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 29 Aug. 2025
The larger stretch of South Broadway counts a lot of vital music venues — HQ (formerly 3 Kings Tavern), the Skylark, the Roxy Broadway, Gothic Theatre, Swallow Hill Music and more — but the corner of South Broadway and Ellsworth still pulses with an energy that can’t be duplicated anywhere else.
—The Know, Denver Post, 15 Aug. 2025
That culture still pulses through basements and backrooms across the boroughs.
—Amy Harclerode, New York Daily News, 8 Aug. 2025
Game day weekends in Charlotte are electric; the city pulses to the beat of the Panthers fans’ energy.
—Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pulses
Verb
-
Pain that is not a word throbs in his shoulders, awakens him each morning.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
6 Jan. 2026
-
While the game is played across the country, its pulse throbs in Rio.—
Michal Ruprecht,
NPR,
28 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
While the former aids in the reduction of puffiness and dark circles in the under-eye area based on hot and cold contrast therapy, the latter comes with three attachments for relieving muscle pain, tension, and soreness through rapid pulsations.—
Stacia Datskovska,
Footwear News,
27 Oct. 2025
-
The silvered soleil face shows black subdials and an outer bright blue pulsations scale calibrated for 15 pulsations.—
Rachel Cormack,
Robb Report,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
But this has been a glorious year regardless of whether Miami beats the Indiana-Oregon winner or not.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
9 Jan. 2026
-
That beats using a garage or carport.—
Glae Thien,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Chen oversaw 10 of these compounds, authorizing beatings and violence to keep the workers in line, the feds allege.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Among other things, the indictment accuses Maduro and his wife of ordering kidnappings, beatings and murders of those who owed them drug money or undermined their drug trafficking operation.—
Michael R. Sisak,
Fortune,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The former allows the player to set beats-per-minute, beats per bar, select different rhythms and whether a sound beeps and/or the device vibrates to the beat.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
9 Jan. 2026
-
The red vibrates off the page in such a pleasing way.—
Emily Temple,
Literary Hub,
11 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pulses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pulses. Accessed 15 Jan. 2026.
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