heartbeat

[ hahrt-beet ]

noun

, Physiology.

1. a pulsation of the heart, including one complete systole and diastole.

heartbeat

/ ˈhɑːtˌbiːt /

noun

1. one complete pulsation of the heart See diastole systole

Word History and Origins

Origin of heartbeat¹

First recorded in 1840–50; heart + beat

Example Sentences

If it’s too much to ask of Arnold that her bid for heightened naturalism make a ton of sense, “Bird” at least maintains a heartbeat of ache and affection for youth in all its rudeness, revealing a filmmaker who isn’t afraid of losing her claws if she traffics in the thing with feathers.

From Los Angeles Times

Eventually all astronauts must leave the ISS - but these three say they would return in a heartbeat.

From BBC

At that second ER visit, her fetus still had a heartbeat.

From Slate

By the time she went to the third ER, she was bleeding and in acute distress; still, she was given not one but two ultrasounds to confirm that there was no fetal heartbeat to be found before she was admitted to the ICU.

From Slate

But in Texas, where Barnica lived, so long as there’s a fetal heartbeat, those procedures are illegal.

From Slate

Related Words

• pulse