Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to palp the pulse

to palp the pulse

8.9
To feel a person's wrist or neck to check their heartbeat
  • phrasal verb
  • /pælp ðə pʌls/
  • Specialized
translation icon : palpar el pulso
  • During the examination, the nurse palped the pulse to check the patient's heart rate.

Examples

  • To determine if she was still alive, he had to palp the pulse in her neck.

  • She was able to palp the pulse accurately after just a few lessons.

  • Doctors are trained to palp the pulse in various emergency situations.

  • The doctor will palp the pulse at your wrist to assess your heart rate.

  • Before making a diagnosis, the paramedic learned to palp the pulse of the injured patient.

Synonyms

to check your pulse
vsto palp the pulse
3 3.2

Feel your wrist or neck to count how fast your heart is beating

is a finger exam of heartbeat at wrist or neck not a broad measurement
to palpate
vsto palp the pulse
  • Specialized
3 8.8

To feel a part of the body with your hands to check for a problem

focuses only on feeling heartbeat at wrist or neck rather than general touch

How Thoroughly

to palpate
  • Specialized
3 8.8
to palp the pulse
  • Specialized
8.9

Surface Forms

palp the pulse infinitive
palped the pulse past
palped the pulse past participle
palping the pulse present participle
palps the pulse third person singular

Morphology

palp + the + pulse

The meaning is directly compositional: 'palp' (to feel or examine by touch) combined with 'pulse' (the heartbeat felt at wrist/neck) yields 'to feel/examine the heartbeat'. The article 'the' is purely grammatical and the medical action is predictable across languages and registers, so a learner who knows the constituent words would understand it.

Etymology

Palp the pulse comes from the simple action of placing fingers on a person's wrist or neck to feel the heartbeat, where palp means to touch and pulse is the beat. So, 'to palp the pulse' means 'to check the heart by touch'.