HEARTBEAT
Dictionary entry overview: What does heartbeat mean?
• HEARTBEAT (noun)
The noun HEARTBEAT has 3 senses:
1. the rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart
2. a very short time (as the time it takes the eye blink or the heart to beat)
3. an animating or vital unifying force
Familiarity information: HEARTBEAT used as a noun is uncommon.
Dictionary entry details
• HEARTBEAT (noun)
Meaning:
The rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural events
Synonyms:
heartbeat; beat; pulse; pulsation
Context example:
he could feel the beat of her heart
Hypernyms ("heartbeat" is a kind of...):
periodic event; recurrent event (an event that recurs at intervals)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "heartbeat"):
diastole (the widening of the chambers of the heart between two contractions when the chambers fill with blood)
systole (the contraction of the chambers of the heart (especially the ventricles) to drive blood into the aorta and pulmonary artery)
pounding; throb; throbbing (an instance of rapid strong pulsation (of the heart))
Meaning:
A very short time (as the time it takes the eye blink or the heart to beat)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting time and temporal relations
Synonyms:
twinkling; trice; split second; New York minute; jiffy; instant; wink; blink of an eye; heartbeat; flash
Context example:
if I had the chance I'd do it in a flash
Hypernyms ("heartbeat" is a kind of...):
bit; minute; moment; second (an indefinitely short time)
Meaning:
An animating or vital unifying force
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Context example:
New York is the commercial heartbeat of America
Hypernyms ("heartbeat" is a kind of...):
force (a powerful effect or influence)
