heart
• noun 1 a hollow muscular organ that pumps the blood through the circulatory system by rhythmic contraction and dilation. 2 the central, innermost, or vital part: the heart of the city. 3 a person’s feeling of or capacity for love or compassion. 4 mood or feeling: a change of heart. 5 courage or enthusiasm. 6 a symbolic representation of a heart with two equal curves meeting at a point at the bottom and a cusp at the top. 7 (hearts) one of the four suits in a pack of playing cards, denoted by a red symbol of a heart. — PHRASES after one’s own heart sharing one’s tastes. at heart in one’s real nature, in contrast to how one may appear. break someone’s heart overwhelm someone with sadness. by heart from memory. close (or dear) to one’s heart of deep interest and concern to one. from the (or the bottom of one’s) heart with sincere feeling. have a heart be merciful. have a heart of gold have a generous or compassionate nature. have one’s heart in one’s mouth be greatly alarmed or apprehensive. have one’s heart in the right place be sincere or well intentioned. one’s heart’s desire something that one greatly wishes for. one’s heartstrings used in reference to one’s deepest feelings of love or compassion. in one’s heart of hearts in one’s innermost feelings. take to heart take (criticism) seriously and be affected by it. wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve make one’s feelings apparent. — ORIGIN Old English.
Perform another search of the Compact Oxford English Dictionary
About this dictionary
The Compact Oxford English Dictionary of Current English contains 145,000 words, phrases, and definitions.
Find out more about Oxford's range of English dictionaries
Sign up for the AskOxford Word of the Day
Search the Little Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
Search the Concise Dictionary of First Names
| 
