Definition of "convulsive" [con•vul•sive]

• Marked by or having the nature of convulsions. (adjective)
• Having or producing convulsions. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Victims of toxic gas canisters fired by Isræli troops writhe in convulsive pain on hospital beds, screaming at the top of their lungs while family and medical aides try vainly to restrain them."
• "He was suffering from a bad cold, which doubled him up in convulsive coughing spells and made his eyes heavy and bloodshot."
• "She attempted two or three times to speak, but not a word escaped from her quivering lips; and the tears gushing from her eyes followed each other in quick succession down her cheeks; and, finally, her pent-up feelings found expression in short, convulsive sobs."