Palpitation — A Vocabulary Story
Two Wheels and a Drum
Yuki's bike had been leaning against the shed all week with its stabilisers off. Today was the day.
"Ready?" asked her dad, holding the back of the saddle.
Yuki nodded, but her heart was doing something strange. It was thumping like a drum at a festival, quick and loud.
"Dad," she said, "I think I have palpitations."
Palpitation means a feeling that your heart is beating very fast, very hard or unevenly, often when you are nervous or excited.
Her dad grinned and gave the saddle a gentle pat. "Everybody gets those on the first go," he said. "Palpitations just mean you care."
The park path was long and flat and nearly empty. Yuki pushed down on the pedal. The bike leaned left, then right, then straightened out. Dad jogged alongside, puffing.
"Still got the palpitations?" he asked.
"Worse," said Yuki. "But good worse."
Then she noticed something. Dad's voice was behind her. Quite far behind. She glanced over her shoulder and saw him standing by the bench with his hands on his knees, laughing.
He had let go ages ago.
Yuki squealed, rode a big loop round the duck pond, and came back to him with her hair everywhere.
"How are the palpitations now?" he asked.
Yuki put a hand over her heart. It was still thumping, but it felt different, like a drum that had switched from nervous to proud.
"Still there," she said. "But I think these are the happy kind."
Her dad nodded. "Those are the best kind. Now go round again. I want a photo for your mum."
Word Definition
palpitation
meaning
a noticeably fast, strong or irregular beating of the heart, often when nervous or excited
synonyms
pounding · fluttering · throbbing · racing
antonyms
steadiness · calm · regularity
example sentence
Too much coffee gave the office manager a palpitation that lasted a few minutes.