heart

noun

\ ˈhärt

Definition of heart

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : 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

2a : 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 trick entry 1 sense 4) containing hearts

3a : 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

6a : 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

heart

verb

hearted; hearting; hearts

Definition of heart (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1 informal

a : love entry 2 Jane hearts John. I loathe beer. But I heart beer commercials …— Rochell D. Thomas

b : to like (see like entry 1 sense 4) an online post, comment, etc., especially by clicking or tapping a heart-shaped symbol The tweet still hits home so much, not just for us, but for the 2.6 million that hearted her tweet too. — The Edge (Auckland, New Zealand)

2 archaic : hearten

3 archaic : to fix in the heart

Heart

geographical name

\ ˈhärt

Definition of Heart (Entry 3 of 3)

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

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about heart

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Examples of heart in a Sentence

Noun

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 on the Web: Noun

We are deeply saddened by yesterday’s tragic incident, and our hearts go out to the family. — Johnny Diaz, sun-sentinel.com, "Baby girl slips from grandfather’s hands, dies in fall from Royal Caribbean cruise ship," 8 July 2019 From Home is like a warm, gentle hug following Avengers: Endgame, which ripped our hearts out and stomped them on the ground for a bit. — Rachel Paige, refinery29.com, "Spider-Man: Far From Home," 5 July 2019 But at the heart of the contention are wind projects commissioned in 2015 and 2016 using feed-in-tariff mechanism, in which the state sets the price of electricity. — Kuwar Singh, Quartz India, "A southern state has dealt India’s renewable energy industry a fresh blow," 5 July 2019 That’s when your heart starts to beat faster, trying to pump more blood to your skin to push the warmth building at your core to the surface. — Michele Cohen Marill, WIRED, "How Extreme Heat Overwhelms Your Body and Becomes Deadly," 3 July 2019 End of Sentence is a familiar story at heart, but beautifully observed, sensitively played and smart enough to wrong-foot audience expectations whenever the plot gets too comfortable. — Stephen Dalton, The Hollywood Reporter, "'End of Sentence': Film Review | Edinburgh 2019," 30 June 2019 In the Amazon rainforest of Venezuela, Yanomami hunter-gatherers subsist on cassava, palm hearts and wild banana. — Jonathon Keats, Discover Magazine, "Scientists Race to Preserve the Biodiversity Inside Our Bodies," 30 June 2019 My aunt started sobbing, my heart sank to my stomach. — Hayden Grove, cleveland.com, "Cleveland did its best, Grandpa: A story of a grandfather, a grandson and a bond built through Cleveland sports," 29 June 2019 This is the question at the heart of Akwaeke Emezi’s exceptional debut novel, Freshwater, which follows a young Nigerian woman who is tormented by the ogbanje. — The Atlantic, "What We’re Reading This Summer," 28 June 2019

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.

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More Definitions for heart

heart

noun

English Language Learners Definition of heart

: 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

See the full definition for heart in the English Language Learners Dictionary

heart

noun

\ ˈhärt

Kids Definition of heart

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

heart

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