heart:
1. In anatomy, a powerful muscular organ maintaining the circulation of blood in the human body by rhythmic contraction and dilation. 2. In Western civilization, the heart is regarded as the center of feelings and emotions, it measures the capacity for affection .
QUOTES:
(1) The Wizard (Frabk Morgan) to Hickory, the Tin Woodsman (Jack Haley) in The Wizard of Oz
(1939):
-- (a) ' Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable .'
-- (b) ' And remember, my sentimental friend, that a heart is not judged by how much you love but by how much you are loved by others .'
(2) Cuthbert J. Twillie (W.C. Fields) proposing marriage to Flower Belle Lee (Mae West) in My Little Chickadee (1940): ' My heart is a bargain today. Will you have me? '
(3) Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) in the arms of Rick/Richard Blain (Humphrey Bogart) during the Nazi invasion of Paris in Casablanca (1942): ' Is that cannon fire or is it my heart pounding? '
(4) Jeff Bailey (Robert Mitchum) about Miss Carson who is betraying her boss/lover in Out of the Past (1947): ' Awfuly cold around the heart .'
(5) Joe Grady (Warren Beatty) in The Only Game in Town (1970): ' Which is worse: the heart abused or the heart unused? '
(6) Merlin (Nicol Williamson) in Excalibur (1981): ' You're not listening. Your heart is not. Love is deaf as well as blind .'
(7) Clifford Stern (Woody Allen), a married man , tells his niece Jenny (Jenny Nichols) about his infatuation with Holly Reed (Mia Farrow) in Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989): ' My heart says one thing my head says another. It's very hard to get your head and heart together in life . (...) In my case they're not even friendly .'
(8) The Narrator of Last of the Dogmen (1995): ' Wherever they get to, all good stories begin and end in the same place , and that's the heart of a man or a woman .'
(9) Ashley Wilkes (Lesley Howard) to Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) in Gone with the Wind (1939): ' Well, isn't it enough that you've gathered every other man's heart today? You've always had mine. You cut your teeth on it .'
(10) Chingachgook (Robert Barrat) to Hawkeye (Randolph Scott) about how Cora Munro is affecting his son Uncas in The Last of the Mohicans (1936): ' Pale face squaw no good [for] Mohican. Fair hair make heart of Uncas weak like water .' Uncas has: ' squaw fever '.
3. The center or soul of something. It also stands for: endurance; essence of; basic of; core; focus; fortitude; foundation; fundamental; gist; gusto; hub ; inspiration (Shakespeare. Henry V : ' Fool, said my Muse to me, look in thy heart, and write! '); interior; kernel; kindness; life ; middle; pivot; pluck ; pump ; root ; seat; soul; spirit; substance; valor.
4. Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
-- In Latin: Semper in absentes felicior aestus amantes .
-- François de LaRochefoucault: 'Absence is to love what wind is to fire / It extinguishes the small, it kindles the great .'
-- Rephrased by Molly McGee (Marion Jordan) to Julie Patterson (Lucille Ball) in Look Who's Laughing (1941): ' Absence makes the heart grow fainter .'
5. Affair of the heart , a love-affair ; a romance . SEE ALSO: affair .
6. All heart : (very) generous; giving and kind; magnanimous; friendly ; personable; sociable; tender.
7. At heart :
-- a) in one's inmost (deepest) feelings;
-- b) basically, essentially, fundamentally.
8. At the heart , at the center/core of.
9. Beat like a heart , to beat at a rapid pace; palpitate; pitter-patter; pound ; pulsate; quiver , shiver, throb.
10. Big-hearted / have a big heart , to be charitable, generous, giving and kind, unselfish.
11. Break a person's heart , to overwhelm a person with sorrow; to crush ; devastate; upset.
12. Break ones heart , to smash one's hopes, to crush emotionally with sorrow; to cause or experience severe disappointment or sorrow.
QUOTES:
(1) Wallace Stevens 1879-1955) Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird : ' Beauty more than bitterness / Makes the heart break .'
(2) Hickory, the Tin Woodsman (Jack Haley) in The Wizard of Oz (1939): ' Now I know I've got a heart, because it's breaking .'
(3) Gambler Jerry 'Babe' Stewart (Clark Gable) flirting with librarian Connie Randall (Carole Lombard) in No Man of Her Own (1932): ' What do you do with all the hearts you break? '
13. Bleeding heart , a person who shows extravagant sympathy; one regarded as too sentimental.
14. Change of heart / have a change of heart , reversing ones stand ; a reversal in position or attitude.
15. Chicken heart , a coward.
16. Close to one's heart / near one's heart , dear to one; loved by or important to one.
17. Cross one's heart , to declare under oath; affirm; assert; attest; avow; give one's word; give witness; pledge oneself; state under oath; swear by; swear to God; swear up-and-down ; take an oath.
18. Cruel-hearted / cruelhearted , having a mean disposition; lacking compassion or kindness.
19. Cry from the heart , from the French : cri de coeur , a passionate outcry (as of appeal or protest).
20. Dear to one's heart , dearly loved; beloved .
21. Eat ones heart out :
-- a) to grieve or feel sorrowful over a seemingly hopeless situation; to feel bitter anguish or grief; to deplore;
-- b) to desire intensely; to crave ;
-- c) to be consumed by jealousy/envy;
-- d) to (be forced to) apologize or retract under pressure;
-- e) to fret.
22. Feel one's heart go out to , to feel for; be compassionate; be in sympathy; be there for; be understanding; bleed for; emphathize; go along with; have compassion; identify with; relate to; share another's sorrow; show kindliness; side with.
23. From the heart / from the bottom of one's heart , with complete honesty or sincerity; sincerely; profoundly; candidly; frankly; in all conscience; in all sincerity; in good faith; naturally; profoundly; truly; truthfully; wholeheartedly; without equivocation. Latin: ex animo.
24. Give/lose one's heart to , to fall in-love-with , to become infatuated with. See love for synonyms.Quote: Sung by 'Crocodile' Dundee (Paul Hogan) in Crocodile Dundee (1986): ' If I give my heart to you / I'll have none and you'll have two .'
25. Good-hearted , considerate; kind and good-natured.
26. Half-hearted / halfhearted , reluctantly; showing little enthusiasm; lacking heart, spirit, or interest.
27. Hard-hearted , rigidly severe; unsympathetic; lacking in responsiveness; obdurate; unfeeling.
28. Have a change of heart , to change one's mind; take back ; back out of; recant; renege on .
29. Have a heart , to be compassionate, sympathetic, forgiving, merciful.
30. Have a heart to heart , to have a frank and intimate discussion.
31. Have one's heart in one's mouth , to be greatly alarmed, apprehensive, frightened, or anxious.
32. Have ones heart in the right place , to be kind and generous; to be sincere or well-intentioned.
33 . Have the heart , to have the courage to, to be hard-hearted enough to. (Usually in the negative.)
34. Heart and soul , completely; fully; thoroughly; through and through.
35. Heart and soul into , conscientious.
36. Heart-free , not in-love .
37. Heart of gold , being generous to a fault; magnanimous; a generous nature.
38 . Heart of heart , Sir William Osler (1849-1919), Science and Immortality ; ' Give me that man/ That is not passion's slave , and I will wear him/ In my heart's core, ay, in my heart of heart/ As I do thee .'
39 . Heart of stone / heart of marble , a stern or cruel nature.
40. Heart to heart , candidly, intimately.
41. Heart rate , the rate at which the heart pumps blood, the number of heartbeats per minute.
42. Heart's ease , ease/peace of mind; calmness of emotion; nothing left to worry about.
43. Heartache , anguish; emotional distress.
44 . Heartbeat : a) one pulsation of the heart; b) the vital center or driving impulse.
45. Heartbreak , overwhelming distress; mental or emotional misery. SYNONYMS: affliction; agony; broken heart; desolation; despair; distress; grief; heartache; heavy heart; sorrow; suffering; torment; torture ; woe.
QUOTES:
(1) Ninny/ Cleo Threadgoode (Jessica Tandy) to Evelyn Couch (Kathy Bates) in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991): ' A heart can be broken and keep on beating just the same .'
(2) Drag queen Chichi Rodriquez (John Leguizamo) in To Wong Foo. Thanks for Everything. Julie Newmar (1995): ' I've got a million dream lovers, allright? I've got a broken heart for every light on Broadway and when one of 'em goes out I just screw in another one. Hello, goodbye .'
46. Heartbreaking , (capable of) causing overpowering sorrow.
47. Heartface , Polari slang for a mate .
48. Heartfelt , deeply or sincerely felt.
49 . Heartless , destitute of feeling; cruel.
-- ' Heartless so-and-so ' From the movie Sunset Boulevard (1950)
-- ' Heartless guttersnipe ' From the movie My Fair Lady (1964)
50. Heartsick , extremely unhappy; depressed; miserable.
51. Heartstricken , deeply grieved; greatly dismayed.
52. Heartthrob , a) an emotionally quickened heartbeat; b) a sweetheart . See love for synonyms.
53. Heaviness of heart / heavyheartedness , cheerlessness, despair, disconsolation, discouragement, dispiritedness, gloominess, melancholia.
54. In heart , in good spirits. Out of heart , in low spirits.
55. In one's heart of hearts , in (the seat of) one's innermost (truest) feelings.
56. Learn by heart , to memorize; to commit to memory. Hence, know by heart .
57. Lose/give one's heart to , to fall in-love-with , to become infatuated with. See love for synonyms.
QUOTES:
(1) Rosie (Katharine Hepburn) and Charlie (Humphrey Bogart) in The African Queen (1951):
-- Rosie Sayer: ' Oh Charlie! You lost your mind .'
-- Charlie Allnut: ' Lost my heart too .'
(2) Topper Harley (Charlie Sheen) to Ramada Thompson (Valeria Golino) in Hot Shots! (1991): ' I've fallen for you like a blind roofer. (...) My heart is falling down around my ankles like a wet pair of pants .'
58. Near one's heart / close to one's heart , dear to one; loved by or important to one.
59 . Out of heart , in low spirits. In heart , in good spirits.
60. Pure of heart , modest and decent. The pure of heart , decent people.
61. Set heart on , to desire ; to want, to long-for .
62. Set one's heart on , to desire , be attracted to, be in-love-with , care for, crave , prefer, take a liking to.
63 . Sick at heart , bereaved; bitter; blue ; cheerless; despondent; disconsolate; distressed; down (in dumps / in mouth); forlorn; gloomy; glum; grief-stricken; heartbroken ; heartsick; heavyhearted; in the dumps; low(-spirited); mournful; out of sorts; sick at heart; sorrowful; troubled; wistful, woebegone.
64. Soft-hearted , generous in spirit; very kind; forgiving; sympathetic.
65. Sound heart, a/of sound heart , healthy; in good health.
66 . Steal someone's heart , to win someone's affection or love .
67. Stouthearted , a) having a stout heart or spirit; b) courageous; c) stubborn.
68 . Take heart , to (re)gain confidence, hope and courage or fortitude; to perk up .
69 . To one's heart's content , to one's entire satisfaction.
70. To the hearts content , until one is fully satisfied.
71. Take to heart , to be (much) affected by; to take seriously and be affected or troubled by.
72. Tug at the heart , to have an effect on ; affect; arouse; get-through to; make an impression; move; strike a chord; upset.
73. Wear ones heart on ones sleeve , to express ones feelings openly, make one's feelings apparent.
74. With all ones heart / with one's whole heart , with ones entire being; with all goodwill; with enthusiasm; without doubts or reservations; truly; doubtlessly.
75. With half a heart , in a half-hearted manner; reluctantly.
Related terms : cordate/cordiform = shaped like a heart.
SEE ALSO: beat-of-one's-heart ; bullock's-heart ; cold-heart ; get-a-heart-attack ; have-one's-heart-doing-back-flips ; have-one's-heart-flip-flop .
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