What does "heart" mean?
A muscular organ that pumps blood through the body, traditionally thought to be the seat of emotion.
Heart
/hɑːt/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A muscular organ that pumps blood through the body, traditionally thought to be the seat of emotion.
- Grammar: heart is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: affection, center, core, essence.
- Useful contrasts: apathy, coldness, cruelty.
- Usage evidence: My heart was filled with happiness.
How to use "heart"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "heart" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "heart" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "heart" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "heart" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "heart" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "affection" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "heart", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A muscular organ that pumps blood through the body, traditionally thought to be the seat of emotion. countable, uncountable
"[…] I did almoſt beleeve, that the motion of the Heart vvas knovvn to God alone: […]"
- 2 a playing card in the major suit that has one or more red hearts on it wordnet
- 3 One's feelings and emotions, especially considered as part of one's character. uncountable
"She has a cold heart."
- 4 an inclination or tendency of a certain kind wordnet
- 5 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. countable, uncountable
"a good, tender, loving, bad, hard, or selfish heart"
Show 18 more definitions
- 6 the courage to carry on wordnet
- 7 Emotional strength that allows one to continue in difficult situations; courage; spirit; a will to compete. countable, uncountable
"The team lost, but they showed a lot of heart."
- 8 the hollow muscular organ located behind the sternum and between the lungs; its rhythmic contractions move the blood through the body wordnet
- 9 Vigorous and efficient activity; power of fertile production; condition of the soil, whether good or bad. countable, uncountable
"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."
- 10 the locus of feelings and intuitions wordnet
- 11 A term of affectionate or kindly and familiar address. archaic, countable, uncountable
"Listen, dear heart, we must go now."
- 12 the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some idea or experience wordnet
- 13 Memory. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"I know almost every Beatles song by heart."
- 14 a positive feeling of liking wordnet
- 15 A wight or being. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"[…] 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,[…]"
- 16 a firm rather dry variety meat (usually beef or veal) wordnet
- 17 A conventional shape or symbol used to represent the heart, love, or emotion: ♥. countable, uncountable
""Aw. Thank you." The Cherub kissed the air between them and sent a small cluster of tiny red hearts at her."
- 18 an area that is approximately central within some larger region wordnet
- 19 A playing card of the suit hearts featuring one or more heart-shaped symbols. countable, uncountable
- 20 a plane figure with rounded sides curving inward at the top and intersecting at the bottom; conventionally used on playing cards and valentines wordnet
- 21 The twenty-fourth Lenormand card. countable, uncountable
- 22 The centre, essence, or core. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"That is the heart of the matter"
- 23 The centre, essence, or core.; The main fraction or product of a distillation run. countable, figuratively, uncountable
Verb
- 1 To be fond of. Often bracketed or abbreviated with a heart symbol. humorous, informal, transitive
"We're but the sum of all our terrors until we heart the dove."
- 2 To mark a comment, post, reply, etc., with the heart symbol (❤). transitive
"She hearted my photos of the kids playing with the dogs."
- 3 To give heart to; to hearten; to encourage. obsolete, transitive
"[…]My cause is hearted; thine hath no less reason."
- 4 To fill an interior with rubble, as a wall or a breakwater. transitive
- 5 To form a dense cluster of leaves, a heart, especially of lettuce or cabbage. intransitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
"My heart was filled with happiness."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "heart"?
Common synonyms include: affection, center, core, essence, abatis, abdomen.
How do you use "heart" in a sentence?
My heart was filled with happiness.
How do you pronounce "heart"?
Pronounced /hɑːt/.
Etymology
PIE word *ḱḗr From Middle English herte, from Old English heorte (“heart”), from Proto-West Germanic *hertā, from Proto-Germanic *hertô (“heart”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱérd (“heart”). Doublet of cardia; 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. The verb sense “to love” is from the 1977 I ❤ NY advertising campaign. Notes on spelling The spelling ⟨ear⟩ for /ɑː(ɹ)/ is paralleled by hearken and hearth, but is problematics since a Early Modern variant with /ɛːr/ can be posited for those words, but not heart. Perhaps it represents Middle Scots hart /hɛːrt/ (reflecting the Scots lengthening of /a/ before /r/ then a consonant, then the early actuation of the Great Vowel Shift in Scots) or a parallel development in Northern England. Alternatively, a back-spelling by speakers of dialects where preconsonantal /ɛːr/ was shortened early, allowing it to undergo the late Middle English lowering to /ar/ (reflected in forms such as larn "learn") is possible.