pit-a-pat
/pɪtəˈpat
/(also pitapat)
adverb
With a sound like quick light steps or taps: her heart went pit-a-pat...
- Our hearts went pitapat when we received the news that the inventors were all set to snap up the million-dollar prize.
- Consequently, I'm doubly grateful for a CD of Rosner's orchestral music, and the designation ‘Volume 1 ‘makes my heart go pit-a-pat.’
- By way of illustration, he invited his readers to ‘fancy Mr. Neville Chamberlain having twenty-five feet of intestines and a heart going pit-a-pat all the time.’
Synonyms
beat rapidly, palpitate, pound, throb, pulsate, pulse, thud, thump, hammer, flutter, pitter-patter, quiver, pump, race, pant, thrill
rare quop
noun [in singular]
A sound like quick light steps or taps.
Origin
Early 16th century: imitative of alternating sounds.