1. (n.) A beating or throbbing, especially of the heart or of an artery, or in an inflamed part; a beat of the pulse.

2. (n.) A single beat or throb of a series.

3. (n.) A stroke or impulse by which some medium is affected, as in the propagation of sounds.

4. (n.) Any touching of another's body willfully or in anger. This constitutes battery.

alternation arrhythmia bar beat barrage beat beating ceaselessness chattering constancy constant flow continualness continuity cyclicalness downbeat drum drum music drumbeat drumfire drumming flutter heartbeat heartthrob incessancy intermittence intermittency meter noninterruption offbeat oscillation palpitation paradiddle patter pendulum motion periodicalness periodicity perpetuity piston motion pitapat pitter-patter pound pounding pulse quick fire rapid fire rapid recurrence rapid succession rapidity rat-a-tat rat-tat rat-tat-tat rataplan rattattoo reappearance recurrence regular wave motion regularity reoccurrence repetition return rhythm roll rub-a-dub ruff ruffle seasonality spatter splutter sputter staccato steadiness stuttering sustainment tat-tat tattoo tempo throb throbbing thrum thumping tom-tom undulation unintermission uninterruption upbeat vibration