Pulsated

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /pʌlˈseɪtɪd/

Definitions

1. Experienced a rhythmic beating or throbbing sensation, often in a regular pattern
2. Produced a regular or steady movement similar to a heartbeat or vibrating pulse
3. Exhibited a continuous rhythmic pulsation, suggesting repetitive expansions and contractions

Etymology: "Pulsated" is the past tense of "pulsate," and the verb's origins are less settled than the familiar Latin story suggests. It may have been formed within English as a back-formation from "pulsation," a noun attested in Middle English from the early 15th century. In that case, English speakers built a verb from a noun, working backwards from the more established form. Another possibility traces the verb through New Latin "pulsare," a verb meaning "to pulse" or "to emit a pulse," especially said of an organ such as the heart. That New Latin verb is itself probably a back-formation from "pulsatio," "pulsation," which appears in the 14th century. Beneath all of this lies classical Latin "pellere," "to strike," the same root behind "push," with which "pulsate" forms a doublet, meaning two words from one source that reached English by different routes.

Synonyms: throbbed, beat, pounded, vibrated, quivered

Antonyms: calmed, stilled, quieted, diminished, decreased