HEARTBEAT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 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 to 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)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

beat; heartbeat; pulsation; pulse

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))

Sense 2

Meaning:

A very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

blink of an eye; flash; heartbeat; instant; jiffy; New York minute; split second; trice; twinkling; wink

Context example:

if I had the chance I'd do it in a flash

Hypernyms ("heartbeat" is a kind of...):

bit; minute; mo; moment; second (an indefinitely short time)

Sense 3

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)

 Context examples 

Others slow down the heartbeat or relax and widen blood vessels.

(Blood Pressure Medicines, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

A method of learning to voluntarily control certain body functions such as heartbeat, blood pressure, and muscle tension with the help of a special machine.

(Biofeedback, NCI Dictionary)

Risks include bleeding, infection, irregular heartbeats, and stroke.

(Heart Surgery, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

The number of heartbeats measured per minute time.

(Beats per Minute, NCI Thesaurus)

Calcium is essential for maintenance of a normal heartbeat and for normal cell functions.

(Calcium Binding Protein, NCI Thesaurus)

Often this leads to an irregular heartbeat - called an arrhythmia - that causes a severe decrease in the pumping function of the heart.

(Heart Attack, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)

The device called FINDER (Finding Individuals for Disaster and Emergency Response) uses microwave-radar technology to detect heartbeats of victims trapped in wreckage.

(DHS and NASA Technology Helps Save Four in Nepal Earthquake Disaster, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

A drug used to treat irregular heartbeat and some types of heart failure.

(Digoxin, NCI Dictionary)

A small device used to correct a heartbeat that is abnormal (too fast, too slow, or irregular).

(ICD, NCI Dictionary)

This slows nerve impulses in the heart and stabilizes the heartbeat.

(Mexiletine, NCI Thesaurus)