Alternative forms

• hart, harte, hearte (all obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle EnglishCategory:English terms inherited from Middle English#HEARTCategory:English terms derived from Middle English#HEART herte, from Old EnglishCategory:English terms inherited from Old English#HEARTCategory:English terms derived from Old English#HEART heorte (“heart”), from Proto-West GermanicCategory:English terms inherited from Proto-West Germanic#HEARTCategory:English terms derived from Proto-West Germanic#HEART *hertā, from Proto-GermanicCategory:English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic#HEARTCategory:English terms derived from Proto-Germanic#HEART *hertô (“heart”), from Proto-Indo-EuropeanCategory:English terms inherited from Proto-Indo-European#HEARTCategory:English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European#HEART *ḱérd (“heart”). Doublet of cardiaCategory:English doublets#HEART; see also core.

Most of the modern figurative senses (such as passion or compassion, spirit, inmost feelings, especially love, affection, and courage) were present in Old English. However, the meaning “center” dates from the early 14th century.^[2] The verb sense “to love” is from the 1977 I ❤ NY advertising campaign.^[2]

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /hɑːt/Category:English 1-syllable words#HEARTCategory:English terms with IPA pronunciation#HEART

  • Audio (Received Pronunciation):

    (file)

    Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#HEART
• (General American) enPR: härt, IPA^(key): /hɑɹt/Category:English 1-syllable words#HEARTCategory:English terms with IPA pronunciation#HEART

  • Audio (California):

    (file)

    Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#HEART
• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)tCategory:Rhymes:English/ɑː(ɹ)t#HEARTCategory:Rhymes:English/ɑː(ɹ)t/1 syllable#HEART
• Homophones: Hart, hartCategory:English terms with homophones#HEART

Noun

heart (countable and uncountable, plural hearts)Category:English lemmas#HEARTCategory:English nouns#HEARTCategory:English uncountable nouns#HEARTCategory:English countable nouns#HEARTCategory:English countable nouns#HEARTCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#HEARTCategory:Pages with entries#HEARTCategory:Pages with 2 entries#HEART

2. (anatomyCategory:en:Anatomy#HEART) A muscular organ that pumps blood through the body, traditionally thought to be the seat of emotion.
   • 1653, William Harvey, “The Causes which Mov’d the Author to Write”, in [anonymous], transl., The Anatomical Exercises of Dr. William Harvey […] Concerning the Motion of the Heart and Blood. […], London: […] Francis Leach, for Richard Lownes […], →OCLC, page 1:

     […] I did almoſt beleeve, that the motion of the Heart vvas knovvn to God alone: […]

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

3. (uncountableCategory:English uncountable nouns#HEART) One's feelings and emotions, especially considered as part of one's character.

   She has a cold heart.Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

   • 1852, Mrs M.A. Thompson, “The Tutor's Daughter”, in Graham's American Monthly Magazine of Literature, Art, and Fashion‎, page 266:

     In the lightness of my heart I sang catches of songs as my horse gayly bore me along the well-remembered road.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 1943, Katherine Woods, transl., The Little Prince, translation of original by Antoine de Saint Exupéry:

     Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 1960, John Updike, 'Rabbit, Run', page 47:

     "Do what the heart commands," Tothero says. "The heart is our only guide."

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

4. The seat of the affections or sensibilities, collectively or separately, as love, hate, joy, grief, courage, etc.; rarely, the seat of the understanding or will; usually in a good sense; personality.

   a good, tender, loving, bad, hard, or selfish heartCategory:English terms with usage examples#HEART

   • c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act III, scene ii:

     Upon his browes was pourtraid vgly death, / And in his eies the furies of his heart, / That ſhine as Comets, menacing reueng, / And caſts a pale complexion on his cheeks.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XI”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC:

     Calm and deep peace in this wide air,
     ⁠These leaves that redden to the fall;
     ⁠And in my heart, if calm at all,
     If any calm, a calm despair: […]

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

5. Emotional strength that allows one to continue in difficult situations; courage; spirit; a will to compete.

   Synonyms: bravery, nerve, spirit; see also Thesaurus:courage

   The team lost, but they showed a lot of heart.Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     Eve, recovering heart, replied.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • c. 1679, William Temple, Essay:

     The expelled nations take heart, and when they fled from one country, invaded another.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

     Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned
   • 2008, "Rights trampled in rush to deport immigrant workers," Quaker Action (magazine), vol. 89, no. 3, page 8:

     "We provided a lot of brains and a lot of heart to the response when it was needed," says Sandra Sanchez, director of AFSC's Immigrants' Voice Program in Des Moines.

   • 2011 September 2, “Wales 2-1 Montenegrof”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎:

     The result still leaves Wales bottom of the group but in better heart for Tuesday night's trip to face England at Wembley, who are now outright leaders after their 3-0 win in Bulgaria.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 2016 September 28, Tom English, “Celtic 3–3 Manchester City”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎, BBC Sport:

     The heart from the home team was immense. Some of them were out on their feet before the end, but they dug in, throwing themselves in front of shots and crosses, surviving.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

6. Vigorous and efficient activity; power of fertile production; condition of the soil, whether good or bad.
   • 1697, Virgil, “The First Book of the Georgics”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, page 52, lines 106–109:

     Both theſe unhappy Soils the Swain forbears, / And keeps a Sabbath of alternate Years: / That the ſpent Earth may gather heart again; / And, better'd by Ceſſation, bear the Grain.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

7. (archaicCategory:English terms with archaic senses#HEART) A term of affectionate or kindly and familiar address.

   Synonyms: honey, sugar; see also Thesaurus:sweetheart

   Listen, dear heart, we must go now.Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

   • c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]. Epilogue.”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene v]:

     My King, my Jove, I speak to thee, my heart!

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii]:

     Awake, dear heart, awake. Thou hast slept well./Awake.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 1991, Stephen Fry, The Liar, pages 9–10:

     Certain unscrupulous men may call upon you here in your dressing-room. They will lavish you with flowers, with compliments, with phials of Hungary water and methuselahs of the costliest champagne. You must be wary of such men, my hearts, they are not to be trusted.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

8. (obsoleteCategory:English terms with obsolete senses#HEART, except in the phrase "by heart") Memory.

   I know almost every Beatles song by heart.Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

9. (figurative) A wight or being.
   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i]:

     […] I would outstare the sternest eyes that look, / Outbrave the heart most daring on earth, / Pluck the young sucking cubs from the she-bear, / Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey, […]

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

10. A conventional shape or symbol used to represent the heart, love, or emotion: ♥.
    • 1998, Pat Cadigan, Tea From an Empty Cup, page 106:

      "Aw. Thank you." The Cherub kissed the air between them and sent a small cluster of tiny red hearts at her.

      Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

      Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned
12. (card gamesCategory:en:Card games#HEART) A playing card of the suit hearts featuring one or more heart-shaped symbols.
13. (cartomancyCategory:en:Cartomancy#HEART) The twenty-fourth Lenormand card.
14. (figurative) The centre, essence, or core.

    Synonyms: crux, gist; see also Thesaurus:gist

    That is the heart of the matterCategory:English terms with collocations#HEART

    The wood at the heart of a tree is the oldest.Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

    Buddhists believe that suffering is right at the heart of all life.Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

    • 1899, Robert Barr, chapter 3, in The Strong Arm:

      At last she spoke in a low voice, hesitating slightly, nevertheless going with incisive directness into the very heart of the problem.

      Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

      Category:Quotation templates to be cleaned
    • 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 150:

      The narrow streets that twist and turn through the compact heart of Dent are surfaced with cobbles which, in the absence of pavements, spread right across from doorstep to doorstep.

      Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

    • 1995, Alberto Zola, “Introduction”, in China‎, Tiger Books International, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 23:

      The heart of the modern city is T’ien-an-men Square, one of the largest — if not the largest — square in the world, created expressly in the Fifties on the ashes of the old “Tartar city,” an agglomeration of small and unassuming low grey houses, inhabited by the populace that was once excluded from the “Forbidden City.”

      Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

    • 2008, BioWare, Mass Effect, Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Feros:

      Arcelia Silva Martinez: Watch out!/Arcelia Silva Martinez: We've got geth in the tower./Fai Dan: Protect the heart of the colony!

      Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

    • 2011 December 27, Mike Henson, “Norwich 0 - 2 Tottenham”, in BBC Sport‎:

      Norwich's attack centred on a front pair of Steve Morison and Grant Holt, but Younes Kaboul at the heart of the Tottenham defence dominated in the air.

      Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:heart.
    1. (chemistryCategory:en:Chemistry#HEART) The main fraction or product of a distillation run.

       Coordinate terms: head, tail

Verb

heart (third-person singular simple present hearts, present participle hearting, simple past and past participle hearted)Category:English lemmas#HEARTCategory:English verbs#HEARTCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#HEARTCategory:Pages with entries#HEARTCategory:Pages with 2 entries#HEART

1. (transitiveCategory:English transitive verbs#HEART, humorousCategory:English humorous terms#HEART, informalCategory:English informal terms#HEART) To be fond of. Often bracketed or abbreviated with a heart symbol. [from late 20th c.]

   Synonyms: love, less than three

   • 2001 April 6, Michael Baldwin, “The Heart Has Its Reasons”, in Commonweal:

     We're but the sum of all our terrors until we heart the dove.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 2006, Susan Reinhardt, Bulldog doesn't have to rely on the kindness of strangers to draw attention, Citizen-Times.com

     I guess at this point we were supposed to feel elated she'd come to her senses and decided she hearts dogs after all.

   • 2008 January 30, “Cheese in our time: Blur and Oasis to end feud with a Stilton”, in The Guardian, London:

     The further we delve into this "story", the more convinced we become of one thing: We heart the Goss.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

   • 2008 July 25, "The Media Hearts Obama?", On The Media, National Public Radio
   • 2019 July 4, John Leland, “Why This Famous Graphic Designer, at 90, Still ♥s NY”, in New York Times‎:

     Lots of people say they love their hometown, but no one hearts NY quite like Milton Glaser.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

3. (transitiveCategory:English transitive verbs#HEART) To mark a comment, post, reply, etc., with the heart symbol (❤).

   Synonym: love

   Coordinate terms: like, unlikeCategory:English links with manual fragments#HEART

   She hearted my photos of the kids playing with the dogs.

   Category:English terms with usage examples#HEART

4. (transitiveCategory:English transitive verbs#HEART, obsoleteCategory:English terms with obsolete senses#HEART) To give heart to; to hearten; to encourage.
   • c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:

     […] My cause is hearted; thine hath no less reason.

     Category:English terms with quotations#HEART

5. (transitiveCategory:English transitive verbs#HEART, masonryCategory:en:Masonry#HEART) To fill an interior with rubble, as a wall or a breakwater.
6. (intransitiveCategory:English intransitive verbs#HEART, agricultureCategory:en:Agriculture#HEART, botanyCategory:en:Botany#HEART) To form a dense cluster of leaves, a heart, especially of lettuce or cabbage.

See also

• <3, ♥, ❤, 🫀

Suits in English · suits (see also: cards, playing cards) (layout · text)
hearts	diamonds	spades	clubs

References

Further reading

• heart on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• Erath, rehat, ather-, Earth, Herta, Harte, rathe, Rathe, earth, th'are, thare, hater, Herat, Taher, Terah, Thera

Etymology

From EnglishCategory:Cantonese terms borrowed from English#HEARTCategory:Cantonese terms derived from English#HEART heart.

Pronunciation

Noun

heartCategory:Chinese lemmas#HEARTCategory:Chinese nouns#HEARTCategory:Chinese entries with incorrect language header#HEARTCategory:Pages with entries#HEARTCategory:Pages with 2 entries#HEART

1. (Hong Kong CantoneseCategory:Hong Kong Cantonese#HEART, figuratively) passion; determination (Classifier: 個／个 c)Category:Chinese nouns classified by 個/个#HEART

   有heart [Cantonese]  ―  jau⁵ haat¹ [Jyutping]  ―  passionateCategory:Cantonese terms with collocations

   冇heart [Cantonese]  ―  mou⁵ haat¹ [Jyutping]  ―  without passionCategory:Cantonese terms with collocations