throb throbint.n.
/ˈθrɒbθrɒb/, U.S. /ˈθrɑbˌθrɑb/ A. int.
Representing a repeated throbbing sound or sensation.
ΚΠ
1740 S. Richardson Pamela II. 172 Never, sure, was any Maiden's perverse Heart under so little Command as mine!.. It is throb, throb, throb, like a little Fool.
1761 Scots Mag. 1 Feb. 96/2 Then throb throb goes my heart.
1835 H. F. S. Lee Backslider iv. 35 My head went throb, throb, and I believe I should have fallen, if I had not burst into tears.
1865 U.S. Service Mag. May 419 Pump, pump, pump, go your carotid arteries; throb, throb, throb, beats your brain.
1919 A. Safroni-Middleton Gabrielle of Lagoon xi. 220 Throb! throb! it came—Gabrielle's soul was hovering between heaven and earth.
1993 Independent (Nexis) 16 Jan. (Weekend section) 34 Throb, throb, throb go the Sierras and the Volvos outside my windows.
B. n.
A throbbing sound or sensation.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > repeated sound or succession of sounds > [noun] > regular or alternating rhythm
cadence1667
throb throb1857
clip-clop1863
chip-chop1876
rum-tum1879
pom-pom1892
throb1892
heartbeat1898
bounce1937
plip-plop1953
1857 Bentley's Misc. Jan. 274 Tic! tic! tic! goes the clock on the stairs, keeping up a sympathetic accompaniment to the throb! throb!—shoot! shoot! that is going on in her face.
1869 Sheffield & Rotherham Weekly Independent 18 Sept. 9/5 Once more Lucy would be listening to the heavy ‘throb-throb’ of her own heart.
1911 Hamilton Literary Mag. Feb. 274 The throb-throb-throb-throb made him clench his hands and moan.
1929 J. B. Priestley Good Compan. i. iv. 107 It was the sound of a lorry engine, an urgent throb-throb.
2003 S. MacDonald Sea Music i. 7 He stands looking towards the harbour, listening to the throb-throb of the boat engines.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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int.n.1740