heart

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noun \ ˈhärt \

Definition of heart

1 a :a hollow muscular organ of vertebrate animals that by its rhythmic contraction acts as a force pump maintaining the circulation of the blood

could feel her heart pounding

b :a structure in an invertebrate animal functionally analogous to the vertebrate heart

c :breast, bosom

placed his hand on his heart

d :something resembling a heart in shape; specifically :a stylized representation of a heart

a card decorated with hearts and flowers

2 a :a playing card marked with a stylized figure of a red heart

b hearts plural :the suit comprising cards marked with hearts

the five of hearts

c hearts plural in form but singular or plural in construction :a game in which the object is to avoid taking tricks (see ¹trick 4) containing hearts

3 a :personality, disposition

a cold heart

b obsolete :intellect

4 :the emotional or moral nature as distinguished from the intellectual nature: such as

a :generous disposition :compassion

a leader with heart

b :love, affection

won her heart

c :courage or enthusiasm especially when maintained during a diffiicult situation

never lost heart

5 :one's innermost character, feelings, or inclinations

knew it in his heart

a man after my own heart

6 a :the central or innermost part :center

a cabin in the heart of the forest

b :the essential or most vital part of something

the heart of the city

get to the heart of the matter

c :the younger central compact part of a leafy rosette (such as a head of lettuce or stalk of celery)

— at heart

:in essence :basically, essentially

a romantic at heart

— by heart

:by rote or from memory

knows the poem by heart

— to heart

:with deep concern

took the criticism to heart

See heart defined for English-language learners

See heart defined for kids

Examples of heart in a Sentence

I could feel my heart pounding.
He has a bad heart.
He put his hand on his heart.
When she heard the news, her heart filled with joy.
She just couldn't find it in her heart to forgive them.
I felt in my heart that our relationship was never meant to be.
a ruler without a heart
Have a heart! Can't you see he needs help?

Recent Examples of heart from the Web

But his heart was still with the speed and spectacle of martial arts.

— yoolim lee, Bloomberg.com, "Ultimate Fighting Championship Has an Asian Rival," 30 Aug. 2017
Many of the dogs and cats could have ringworm or heart worm, which will need to be cured before they can be adopted.

— rosemary regina sobol, chicagotribune.com, "Chicago shelters taking in animals from Houston to free space for stranded pets," 30 Aug. 2017
Almost 500 photographs will appear in the video, which will be shown in the heart of Times Square.

— Cincinnati.com, "White to help kick off Down Syndrome Awareness Month," 30 Aug. 2017
Whether this performance won any hearts and minds remains to be seen.

— eric levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump Tries to Make Tax Cuts for Special Interests Sound Populist," 30 Aug. 2017
A team of surgeons successfully removed a dangerous heart tumor from a human fetus during pregnancy, then sewed up the mother's uterus so the pregnancy could resume its course.

— tom avril, Philly.com, "'Artificial womb' scientist at CHOP wins Philly Geek award," 30 Aug. 2017
Fairfield has always had a special place in my heart given my father's ties as an alumnus.

— desmond conner, courant.com, "Central Connecticut Athletic Director Schlickmann Heading To Fairfield," 28 Aug. 2017
Cardiologists hailed it as vindication for the heart attack–

— jennifer couzin-frankel, Science | AAAS, "Anti-inflammatory cuts risk of heart attack," 27 Aug. 2017
In Ingrid's case, the photo-sharing service seems to ease a heart-eating loneliness that followed the loss of her her mother.

— annalee newitz, Ars Technica, "Ingrid Goes West revels in everything wrong with Instagram celebrities," 27 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'heart.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Illustration of heart

Origin and Etymology of heart

Middle English hert, from Old English heorte; akin to Old High German herza heart, Latin cord-, cor, Greek kardia

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

heart Synonyms

Other Anatomy Terms

bilateral symmetry, carotid, cartilage, dorsal, entrails, prehensile, renal, solar plexus, supine, thoracic, ventral

heart

verb

Definition of heart

transitive verb

1 informal :²love

Jane hearts John.

I loathe beer. But I heart beer commercials …
—Rochell D. Thomas

2 archaic :hearten

3 archaic :to fix in the heart

Recent Examples of heart from the Web

About 37 years ago, light-hitting Seattle shortstop Mario Mendoza became the punch line of a light-hearted joke.

— andy greder, Twin Cities, "Minn-doza Line is United’s measuring stick for inaugural MLS season," 24 Feb. 2017
No one has taken this idea to heart more than local veterinarian Tom Burns.

— brian skerry, National Geographic, "Great White Sharks Invade This Town Every Summer," 10 June 2016

Origin and Etymology of heart

see ¹heart

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

Heart

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geographical name \ ˈhärt \

Definition of Heart

river in southwestern North Dakota flowing 200 miles (320 kilometers) east into the Missouri River opposite Bismarck

HEART Defined for English Language Learners

heart

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noun

Definition of heart for English Language Learners

: the organ in your chest that pumps blood through your veins and arteries
: the front part of your chest
: the heart thought of as the place where emotions are felt

HEART Defined for Kids

heart

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noun \ ˈhärt \

Definition of heart for Students

1 :a hollow muscular organ of the body that expands and contracts to move blood through the arteries and veins

2 :something shaped like a heart

a Valentine's heart

3 :a part near the center or deep into the interior

They reached the heart of the desert.

4 :the most essential part

That's the heart of the problem.

5 :human feelings

Speak from your heart.

6 :courage or enthusiasm

I don't have the heart to tell them what happened.

— by heart

:so as to be able to repeat from memory

I think I'm going to learn his new phone number by heart.
—Paula Danziger, Amber Brown

Medical Dictionary

heart

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noun \ ˈhärt \

medical Definition of heart

1 :a hollow muscular organ of vertebrate animals that by its rhythmic contraction acts as a force pump maintaining the circulation of the blood and that in the human adult is about five inches (13 centimeters) long and three and one half inches (9 centimeters) broad, is of conical form, is placed obliquely in the chest with the broad end upward and to the right and the apex opposite the interval between the cartilages of the fifth and sixth ribs on the left side, is enclosed in a serous pericardium, and consists as in other mammals and in birds of four chambers divided into an upper pair of rather thin-walled atria which receive blood from the veins and a lower pair of thick-walled ventricles into which the blood is forced and which in turn pump it into the arteries

2 :a structure in an invertebrate animal functionally analogous to the vertebrate heart