Heart

7 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Heart \Heart\ (h[aum]rt), n. [OE. harte, herte, heorte, AS.
     heorte; akin to OS. herta, OFies. hirte, D. hart, OHG. herza,
     G. herz, Icel. hjarta, Sw. hjerta, Goth. ha['i]rt[=o], Lith.
     szirdis, Russ. serdtse, Ir. cridhe, L. cor, Gr. kardi`a,
     kh^r. [root]277. Cf. {Accord}, {Discord}, {Cordial}, 4th
     {Core}, {Courage}.]


     1. (Anat.) A hollow, muscular organ, which, by contracting
        rhythmically, keeps up the circulation of the blood.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Why does my blood thus muster to my heart! --Shak.
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     Note: In adult mammals and birds, the heart is
           four-chambered, the right auricle and ventricle being
           completely separated from the left auricle and
           ventricle; and the blood flows from the systemic veins
           to the right auricle, thence to the right ventricle,
           from which it is forced to the lungs, then returned to
           the left auricle, thence passes to the left ventricle,
           from which it is driven into the systemic arteries. See
           Illust. under {Aorta}. In fishes there are but one
           auricle and one ventricle, the blood being pumped from
           the ventricle through the gills to the system, and
           thence returned to the auricle. In most amphibians and
           reptiles, the separation of the auricles is partial or
           complete, and in reptiles the ventricles also are
           separated more or less completely. The so-called lymph
           hearts, found in many amphibians, reptiles, and birds,
           are contractile sacs, which pump the lymph into the
           veins.
           [1913 Webster]
  
     2. The seat of the affections or sensibilities, collectively
        or separately, as love, hate, joy, grief, courage, and the
        like; rarely, the seat of the understanding or will; --
        usually in a good sense, when no epithet is expressed; the
        better or lovelier part of our nature; the spring of all
        our actions and purposes; the seat of moral life and
        character; the moral affections and character itself; the
        individual disposition and character; as, a good, tender,
        loving, bad, hard, or selfish heart.
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              Hearts are dust, hearts' loves remain. --Emerson.
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     3. The nearest the middle or center; the part most hidden and
        within; the inmost or most essential part of any body or
        system; the source of life and motion in any organization;
        the chief or vital portion; the center of activity, or of
        energetic or efficient action; as, the heart of a country,
        of a tree, etc.
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              Exploits done in the heart of France. --Shak.
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              Peace subsisting at the heart
              Of endless agitation.                 --Wordsworth.
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     4. Courage; courageous purpose; spirit.
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              Eve, recovering heart, replied.       --Milton.
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              The expelled nations take heart, and when they fly
              from one country invade another.      --Sir W.
                                                    Temple.
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     5. Vigorous and efficient activity; power of fertile
        production; condition of the soil, whether good or bad.
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              That the spent earth may gather heart again.
                                                    --Dryden.
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     6. That which resembles a heart in shape; especially, a
        roundish or oval figure or object having an obtuse point
        at one end, and at the other a corresponding indentation,
        -- used as a symbol or representative of the heart.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     7. One of the suits of playing cards, distinguished by the
        figure or figures of a heart; as, hearts are trumps.
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     8. Vital part; secret meaning; real intention.
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              And then show you the heart of my message. --Shak.
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     9. A term of affectionate or kindly and familiar address. "I
        speak to thee, my heart." --Shak.
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     Note: Heart is used in many compounds, the most of which need
           no special explanation; as, heart-appalling,
           heart-breaking, heart-cheering, heart-chilled,
           heart-expanding, heart-free, heart-hardened,
           heart-heavy, heart-purifying, heart-searching,
           heart-sickening, heart-sinking, heart-sore,
           heart-stirring, heart-touching, heart-wearing,
           heart-whole, heart-wounding, heart-wringing, etc.
           [1913 Webster]
  
     {After one's own heart}, conforming with one's inmost
        approval and desire; as, a friend after my own heart.
  
              The Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart.
                                                    --1 Sam. xiii.
                                                    14.
  
     {At heart}, in the inmost character or disposition; at
        bottom; really; as, he is at heart a good man.
  
     {By heart}, in the closest or most thorough manner; as, to
        know or learn by heart. "Composing songs, for fools to get
        by heart" (that is, to commit to memory, or to learn
        thoroughly). --Pope.
  
     {to learn by heart}, to memorize.
  
     {For my heart}, for my life; if my life were at stake. [Obs.]
        "I could not get him for my heart to do it." --Shak.
  
     {Heart bond} (Masonry), a bond in which no header stone
        stretches across the wall, but two headers meet in the
        middle, and their joint is covered by another stone laid
        header fashion. --Knight.
  
     {Heart and hand}, with enthusiastic co["o]peration.
  
     {Heart hardness}, hardness of heart; callousness of feeling;
        moral insensibility. --Shak.
  
     {Heart heaviness}, depression of spirits. --Shak.
  
     {Heart point} (Her.), the fess point. See {Escutcheon}.
  
     {Heart rising}, a rising of the heart, as in opposition.
  
     {Heart shell} (Zool.), any marine, bivalve shell of the genus
        {Cardium} and allied genera, having a heart-shaped shell;
        esp., the European {Isocardia cor}; -- called also {heart
        cockle}.
  
     {Heart sickness}, extreme depression of spirits.
  
     {Heart and soul}, with the utmost earnestness.
  
     {Heart urchin} (Zool.), any heartshaped, spatangoid sea
        urchin. See {Spatangoid}.
  
     {Heart wheel}, a form of cam, shaped like a heart. See {Cam}.
        
  
     {In good heart}, in good courage; in good hope.
  
     {Out of heart}, discouraged.
  
     {Poor heart}, an exclamation of pity.
  
     {To break the heart of}.
        (a) To bring to despair or hopeless grief; to cause to be
            utterly cast down by sorrow.
        (b) To bring almost to completion; to finish very nearly;
            -- said of anything undertaken; as, he has broken the
            heart of the task.
  
     {To find in the heart}, to be willing or disposed. "I could
        find in my heart to ask your pardon." --Sir P. Sidney.
  
     {To have at heart}, to desire (anything) earnestly.
  
     {To have in the heart}, to purpose; to design or intend to
        do.
  
     {To have the heart in the mouth}, to be much frightened.
  
     {To lose heart}, to become discouraged.
  
     {To lose one's heart}, to fall in love.
  
     {To set the heart at rest}, to put one's self at ease.
  
     {To set the heart upon}, to fix the desires on; to long for
        earnestly; to be very fond of.
  
     {To take heart of grace}, to take courage.
  
     {To take to heart}, to grieve over.
  
     {To wear one's heart upon one's sleeve}, to expose one's
        feelings or intentions; to be frank or impulsive.
  
     {With all one's heart}, {With one's whole heart}, very
        earnestly; fully; completely; devotedly.
        [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Heart \Heart\ (h[aum]rt), v. t.
     To give heart to; to hearten; to encourage; to inspirit.
     [Obs.]
     [1913 Webster]
  
           My cause is hearted; thine hath no less reason. --Shak.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Heart \Heart\, v. i.
     To form a compact center or heart; as, a hearting cabbage.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  heart
       n 1: the locus of feelings and intuitions; "in your heart you
            know it is true"; "her story would melt your bosom"
            [syn: {bosom}]
       2: the hollow muscular organ located behind the sternum and
          between the lungs; its rhythmic contractions pump blood
          through the body; "he stood still, his heart thumping
          wildly" [syn: {pump}, {ticker}]
       3: the courage to carry on; "he kept fighting on pure spunk";
          "you haven't got the heart for baseball" [syn: {mettle}, {nerve},
           {spunk}]
       4: an area that is approximately central within some larger
          region; "it is in the center of town"; "they ran forward
          into the heart of the struggle"; "they were in the eye of
          the storm" [syn: {center}, {centre}, {middle}, {eye}]
       5: the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some
          idea or experience; "the gist of the prosecutor's
          argument"; "the heart and soul of the Republican Party";
          "the nub of the story" [syn: {kernel}, {substance}, {core},
           {center}, {essence}, {gist}, {heart and soul}, {inwardness},
           {marrow}, {meat}, {nub}, {pith}, {sum}, {nitty-gritty}]
       6: an inclination or tendency of a certain kind; "he had a
          change of heart" [syn: {spirit}]
       7: a plane figure with rounded sides curving inward at the top
          and intersecting at the bottom; conventionally used on
          playing cards and valentines; "he drew a heart and called
          it a valentine"
       8: a firm rather dry variety meat (usually beef or veal); "a
          five-pound beef heart will serve six"
       9: a positive feeling of liking; "he had trouble expressing the
          affection he felt"; "the child won everyone's heart" [syn:
           {affection}, {affectionateness}, {fondness}, {tenderness},
           {warmheartedness}]
       10: a playing card in the major suit of hearts; "he led the
           queen of hearts"

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  476 Moby Thesaurus words for "heart":
     Amor, Benzedrine, Benzedrine pill, C, Christian love, Dexamyl,
     Dexamyl pill, Dexedrine, Dexedrine pill, Eros, Methedrine, abatis,
     abdomen, admiration, adoration, affection, agape, amphetamine,
     amphetamine sulfate, angina, angina pectoris, anima, anima humana,
     animating force, anus, aortic insufficiency, aortic stenosis,
     apoplectic stroke, apoplexy, appendix, ardency, ardor, arrhythmia,
     arteriosclerosis, atherosclerosis, atman, atrial fibrillation,
     attachment, auricular fibrillation, axiom, axis, ba, backbone,
     basics, bathmism, beating heart, being, bench mark, beriberi heart,
     biological clock, biorhythm, blind gut, blood, bodily love,
     boldness, bones, bosom, bottom, bowels, brain, brains, bravery,
     breast, breath, breath of life, brotherly love, buddhi,
     callousness, cardiac arrest, cardiac insufficiency, cardiac shock,
     cardiac stenosis, cardiac thrombosis, cardinal point, carditis,
     caritas, cecum, center, center of action, center of gravity,
     center of life, centroid, centrum, charity, chief thing,
     chitterlings, chutzpah, climax, cocaine, cockscomb, coke, colon,
     compassion, concern, congenital heart disease, conjugal love,
     consideration, cor biloculare, cor juvenum, cor triatriatum, core,
     cornerstone, coronary, coronary insufficiency, coronary thrombosis,
     courage, crisis, critical point, crux, crystal, cue, dauntlessness,
     dead center, deepest recesses, desire, determination, devotion,
     dextroamphetamine sulfate, diameter, diaphragm,
     diastolic hypertension, distillate, distillation, divine breath,
     divine spark, duodenum, ecstasy, ego, elan vital, elixir, empathy,
     encased heart, endocarditis, endocardium, enthusiasm, entrails,
     epicenter, equator, esoteric reality, esprit, essence,
     essence of life, essential, essential matter, excitement,
     extrasystole, fabric, faithful love, fancy, fatty heart, feelings,
     fervency, fervidness, fervor, fibroid heart, fire, flame,
     flask-shaped heart, flower, focal point, focus, fondness, football,
     force of life, foregut, frame, frame of mind, free love,
     free-lovism, frosted heart, fundamental, fundamentals, furor, fury,
     generosity, giblets, gist, gizzard, goodness, gravamen,
     great point, grit, growth force, gusto, guts, gutsiness, guttiness,
     hairy heart, haslet, heart attack, heart block, heart condition,
     heart disease, heart failure, heart of hearts, heart of oak,
     heartbeat, heartblood, heartiness, heartlessness, heartstrings,
     heat, hero worship, high blood pressure, high point, hindgut, hub,
     humanitarianism, humanity, humor, hypertension,
     hypertensive heart disease, hypostasis, idolatry, idolism,
     idolization, impassionedness, important thing, impulse of life,
     inmost heart, inmost soul, innards, inner, inner essence,
     inner landscape, inner life, inner man, inner mechanism,
     inner nature, inner recess, inner self, innermost being,
     insensitivity, inside, insides, inspiriting force, interior,
     interior man, intern, internal, internals, intestinal fortitude,
     intestine, intrados, inward, inwards, ischemic heart disease,
     issue, jejunum, jiva, jivatma, jolly bean, kernel, keystone, khu,
     kidney, kidneys, kindliness, kindness, kishkes, landmark,
     large intestine, lasciviousness, libido, life breath, life cycle,
     life essence, life force, life principle, life process, lifeblood,
     like, liking, liveliness, liver, liver and lights, living force,
     love, lovemaking, lung, magnanimity, main point, main thing, manes,
     married love, marrow, material, material point, matter, mean, meat,
     median, medium, medulla, metacenter, methamphetamine hydrochloride,
     mettle, middle, midgut, midmost, midriff, midst, milestone, mind,
     mitral insufficiency, mitral stenosis, mood, morale, moxie,
     myocardial infarction, myocardial insufficiency, myocarditis,
     myovascular insufficiency, nave, navel, nephesh, nerve,
     nerve center, note, nub, nucleus, nuts and bolts, omphalos,
     ox heart, palate, palpitation, paralytic stroke,
     paroxysmal tachycardia, passion, passionateness, penetralia,
     pep pill, pericarditis, perineum, physical love, pile, pith, pity,
     pivot, pluck, pneuma, polestar, popular regard, popularity,
     postulate, prana, premature beat, principle,
     pseudoaortic insufficiency, psyche, pulmonary insufficiency,
     pulmonary stenosis, pump, purple heart, purusha, pylorus, quick,
     quid, quiddity, quintessence, real issue, recesses, rectum, regard,
     relish, resolution, rheumatic heart disease, root, round heart,
     ruach, salient point, sap, savor, sclerosis, seat, seat of life,
     secret heart, secret place, secret places, sensibility,
     sensitivity, sentiment, sentiments, sex, sexual love, shade,
     shadow, shine, sincerity, sine qua non, small intestine, snow,
     soul, spark of life, speed, spirit, spirits, spiritual being,
     spiritual love, spiritus, spleen, spunk, stamina, state of mind,
     stimulant, stomach, stony heart, storm center, stout heart, stroke,
     stuff, substance, substantive point, sum and substance, sweetbread,
     sympathy, tachycardia, temper, tender feeling, tender passion,
     tenderness, the bottom line, the nitty-gritty, the point, the self,
     thick, thick of things, thrombosis, ticker, tone, tongue,
     toughness, tricuspid insufficiency, tricuspid stenosis, tripe,
     tripes, true being, true inwardness, truelove, turning point,
     turtle heart, umbilicus, understanding, upper, uxoriousness,
     varicose veins, varix, vehemence, vein, ventricular fibrillation,
     vermiform appendix, verve, vis vitae, vis vitalis, viscera,
     vital center, vital energy, vital flame, vital fluid, vital force,
     vital principle, vital spark, vital spirit, vitals, waist,
     waistline, warmth, warmth of feeling, weakness, will, works,
     worship, yearning, zeal, zest, zone
  
  

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  Heart
     According to the Bible, the heart is the centre not only of
     spiritual activity, but of all the operations of human life.
     "Heart" and "soul" are often used interchangeably (Deut. 6:5;
     26:16; comp. Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30, 33), but this is not
     generally the case.
     
       The heart is the "home of the personal life," and hence a man
     is designated, according to his heart, wise (1 Kings 3:12,
     etc.), pure (Ps. 24:4; Matt. 5:8, etc.), upright and righteous
     (Gen. 20:5, 6; Ps. 11:2; 78:72), pious and good (Luke 8:15),
     etc. In these and such passages the word "soul" could not be
     substituted for "heart."
     
       The heart is also the seat of the conscience (Rom. 2:15). It
     is naturally wicked (Gen. 8:21), and hence it contaminates the
     whole life and character (Matt. 12:34; 15:18; comp. Eccl. 8:11;
     Ps. 73:7). Hence the heart must be changed, regenerated (Ezek.
     36:26; 11:19; Ps. 51:10-14), before a man can willingly obey
     God.
     
       The process of salvation begins in the heart by the believing
     reception of the testimony of God, while the rejection of that
     testimony hardens the heart (Ps. 95:8; Prov. 28:14; 2 Chr.
     36:13). "Hardness of heart evidences itself by light views of
     sin; partial acknowledgment and confession of it; pride and
     conceit; ingratitude; unconcern about the word and ordinances of
     God; inattention to divine providences; stifling convictions of
     conscience; shunning reproof; presumption, and general ignorance
     of divine things."
     

From THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY ((C)1911 Released April 15 1993) [devils]:

  HEART, n.  An automatic, muscular blood-pump.  Figuratively, this
  useful organ is said to be the esat of emotions and sentiments -- a
  very pretty fancy which, however, is nothing but a survival of a once
  universal belief.  It is now known that the sentiments and emotions
  reside in the stomach, being evolved from food by chemical action of
  the gastric fluid.  The exact process by which a beefsteak becomes a
  feeling -- tender or not, according to the age of the animal from
  which it was cut; the successive stages of elaboration through which a
  caviar sandwich is transmuted to a quaint fancy and reappears as a
  pungent epigram; the marvelous functional methods of converting a
  hard-boiled egg into religious contrition, or a cream-puff into a sigh
  of sensibility -- these things have been patiently ascertained by M.
  Pasteur, and by him expounded with convincing lucidity.  (See, also,
  my monograph, _The Essential Identity of the Spiritual Affections and
  Certain Intestinal Gases Freed in Digestion_ -- 4to, 687 pp.)  In a
  scientific work entitled, I believe, _Delectatio Demonorum_ (John
  Camden Hotton, London, 1873) this view of the sentiments receives a
  striking illustration; and for further light consult Professor Dam's
  famous treatise on _Love as a Product of Alimentary Maceration_.