the rate at which the heart beats; usually measured to obtain a quick evaluation of a person's health
"The nurse checked his pulse quickly to see if he was running a fever after the long hike."
edible seeds of various pod-bearing plants (peas or beans or lentils etc.)
"She added a cup of red pulse to the soup to thicken it and add protein."
A normally regular beat felt when arteries near the skin (for example, at the neck or wrist) are depressed, caused by the heart pumping blood through them.
"The farmer harvested his pulse crop early because the frost was predicted to arrive before the beans were ready."
Annual leguminous plants (such as beans, lentils, and peas) yielding grains or seeds used as food for humans or animals; (countable) such a plant; a legume.
In plain English: A pulse is the rhythmic beating of your heart that you can feel in certain parts of your body.
"The doctor checked my pulse to see if I was healthy."
Usage: In everyday usage, the word "pulse" almost exclusively refers to the rhythmic throbbing of an artery, not to legumes like beans or lentils. Although pulses are indeed edible plants, you should use "legume," "bean," or "lentil" if you mean food, reserving "pulse" for medical contexts or specific culinary discussions about dried seeds.
To emit or impel (something) in pulses or waves.
"The new laser scanner is designed to pulse light rapidly across the surface of the material for precise measurements."
In plain English: To pulse means to beat or throb rhythmically, like your heart does when you exercise.
"The doctor pressed her fingers to his wrist to check his pulse."
Usage: Use pulse as a verb to describe sending out signals, light, or sound in intermittent bursts rather than a steady stream. Do not use it to mean beating regularly, as that is the noun form associated with heartbeats or electrical rhythms.
The word "pulse" entered English in the Late Middle Ages via Anglo-Norman and Middle French, originally referring to the regular beat of arteries or a place on the body where that rhythm could be felt. It traces back to the Latin pulsus, which carried similar meanings of an impulse or stroke before evolving into our modern term for checking one's heartbeat.