# heart

Pronunciation: US say "HAHRT" /hɑɹt/; UK say "HAHT" /hɑːt/

## Noun

1. A muscular organ in the chest that pumps blood through the body, long regarded as the source of feeling.
   - Simple: The muscle in the chest that pumps blood around the body.
   - _Surgeons worked for hours to repair the damaged heart._
   - _A healthy heart pumps about five liters of blood each minute._
2. The inner source of feelings such as love, joy, grief, and courage, often regarded as the seat of one's character and good nature.
   - Simple: The part of a person seen as the source of love, feelings, and good character.
   - _For all his gruff talk, the old mechanic has a heart of gold._
   - _Her heart was heavy with grief as she packed up her father's house._
3. The central part, essence, or core of something.
   - Simple: The central or most important part of something.
   - _The new library sits in the heart of the city._
   - _At the heart of the dispute lies a simple misunderstanding._
4. The stylized shape ♥, used as a symbol of the heart, of love, or of emotion.
   - Simple: A simple shape, ♥, used to stand for love or affection.
   - _She decorated the card with a heart in each corner._
   - _Tiny hearts floated across the screen during the livestream._
5. Resolve that lets a person persevere through adversity; courage, spirit, or the determination to keep competing.
   - Simple: The inner strength, courage, and spirit that keep someone going through hard times.
   - _Down by twenty points, the players still showed plenty of heart._
   - _He took heart from the crowd's encouragement and pressed on._
6. A card from the hearts suit of a deck, bearing one or more red heart-shaped pips.
   - Simple: A playing card from the suit marked with red heart shapes.
   - _I led with a low heart to draw out the ace._
   - _Collecting too many hearts cost him the round._
9. A living person or being, especially one referred to with feeling.
   - Simple: A living person, often spoken of with feeling or pity.
   - _Not a braver heart ever set sail from that little harbor._
   - _The whole village mourned the passing of such a gentle heart._
10. Memory; now used only in the phrase by heart, meaning from memory.
   - Simple: Memory, now used only in the phrase by heart, which means from memory.
11. Vigorous, productive condition, especially the fertile state of soil and its power to yield strong growth.
   - Simple: A strong, productive condition, especially of soil that can support healthy plant growth.
   - _Careful manuring kept the meadows in good heart through many seasons._
   - _The exhausted field had lost its heart after decades of overcropping._
14. The tender inner core of some vegetables, such as artichoke, cabbage, celery, or lettuce: firm, pale, and often highly valued as food.
   - Simple: The pale, firm, tender middle part of some vegetables, like lettuce or celery, that people often enjoy eating.
   - _Peel away the tough outer stalks until you reach the pale heart of the celery._
   - _The chef braised cabbage hearts in butter and served them with roast pork._

## Verb

7. To mark a comment, post, reply, or similar with the heart symbol.
   - Simple: To mark a comment, post, or message with the heart symbol to show you like it.
   - _Fans heart almost every update the studio posts._
   - _She hearted his comment to show she had seen it._
8. To be fond of someone or something. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To like or love someone or something very much.
   - _Fans absolutely heart the show's quirky humor._
   - _We totally heart that cozy little cafe downtown._

## Noun

12. A fond or familiar name used in directly addressing a loved one. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: A loving name used when speaking to someone you care about.
   - _Fear nothing, my heart, for I shall return before winter._
   - _Rest now, sweet heart; the long journey is over at last._

## Verb

13. To give courage to someone; to hearten or encourage. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To give someone courage and make them feel braver.

## Other meanings

- (noun) The principal fraction drawn off during a distillation run, valued as its purest and finest product.
- (verb) To form a dense, tightly packed cluster of central leaves, as lettuce or cabbage does.
- (noun) The twenty-fourth card of the Lenormand cartomantic deck.
- (verb) To pack the interior of a structure such as a wall or breakwater with rubble.

## Origin

"Heart" comes from Middle English "herte," from Old English "heorte," going back through Proto-Germanic *hertô to Proto-Indo-European *ḱérd, all meaning "heart." Most modern figurative senses such as passion, courage, and love were already present in Old English, and the verb sense "to love" comes from the 1977 "I ❤ NY" campaign.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/heart (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).