Webster's English Dictionary

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pulse

1. pulse \'p*ls\ n [ME puls, fr. OF pouls porridge, fr. L pult-, puls; 
   aki]n to L pollen fine flour - more at POLLEN : the edible seeds of various 
   leguminous crops (as peas, beans, lentils);  also : a plant yielding pulse
2. pulse n [ME puls, fr. MF pouls, fr. L pulsus, lit., beating, fr. 
   p]ulsus, pp. of pellere to drive, push, beat - more at FELT 1: a regular 
   throbbing caused in the arteries by the contractions of the he art; also : 
   a single excursion of such throbbing 2a: underlying sentiment or opinion or 
   an indication of it  2b: VITALITY  3a: rhythmical beating, vibration, or 
   sounding  3b: BEAT, THROB  4a: a transient variation of a quantity (as 
   electrical current or voltage)  whose value is normally constant 4b: an 
   electromagnetic wave or modulation thereof of brief duration 
3. pulse vi : to exhibit a pulse or pulsation : THROB  1: to drive by or as 
   if by a pulsation  2: to cause to pulsate  3a: to produce or modulate (as 
   electromagnetic waves) in the form of pulse s {pulsed waves} 3b: to cause 
   (as apparatus) to produce pulses