heart
heart — noun
1. the organ inside your chest that pumps blood through your body, keeping you aliv
the organ inside your chest that pumps blood through your body, keeping you alive.
Tanvi's heart was beating fast after she ran up the stairs.
collocation: heart beats fast / heart pounds
The doctor listened to Christopher's heart with a stethoscope.
collocation: listen to someone's heart
A healthy heart pumps about five litres of blood every minute.
Jiwoo felt her heart pounding as she waited for the test results.
Exercise like swimming or walking can strengthen your heart over time.
用法筆記
Often used with verbs describing physical sensation: 'beat', 'pound', 'race', 'thump'. Can also describe heart-related medical conditions like 'heart attack' or 'heart disease'.
常見錯誤
2. a person's emotional nature, especially the capacity for love, kindness, or symp
a person's emotional nature, especially the capacity for love, kindness, or sympathy — for example, having a warm heart means you care about other people.
Eli has a kind heart and always helps neighbours carry their groceries.
collocation: kind heart / good heart
The old teacher touched the hearts of everyone who knew her.
collocation: touch someone's heart
Layla spoke from the heart about her childhood in a small village.
A good leader rules with both the head and the heart.
Andrew knew in his heart that the decision was the right one.
- soul
more spiritual, refers to the immaterial essence of a person rather than just emotion
- nature
broader term covering temperament and behaviour, not just emotions
- compassion
focuses specifically on sympathy for others' suffering
用法筆記
Frequently found in fixed phrases like 'at heart', 'in one's heart of hearts', 'from the bottom of one's heart'. Often contrasted with 'head' (logic/reason vs emotion).
常見錯誤
3. the most central or essential part of a place, system, problem, or idea.
the most central or essential part of a place, system, problem, or idea.
The old market is at the very heart of the city.
preposition: at the heart of
Trust is the heart of any strong friendship.
The team's proposal got right to the heart of the problem.
Camila found a small café in the heart of the old town.
At its heart, the debate is about fairness, not money.
用法筆記
Almost always followed by 'of' + noun phrase. Common in both spatial contexts ('heart of the forest') and abstract contexts ('heart of the matter'). Not used for the literal centre of a geometric shape.
常見錯誤
4. the firm inner section of leafy vegetables like cabbage, lettuce, or artichoke,
the firm inner section of leafy vegetables like cabbage, lettuce, or artichoke, where the leaves are packed tightly together.
Cut the cabbage in half and remove the hard white heart before slicing.
collocation: remove/cut out the heart
The heart of a romaine lettuce is tender and slightly sweet.
Padma sliced the artichoke until she reached the soft, edible heart.
The recipe says to keep the hearts of the baby bok choy whole.
- core
more general term; 'core' is used for fruits while 'heart' is for leafy vegetables
用法筆記
Distinct from 'core' (used for fruits like apples). 'Heart' specifically refers to the inner leaves or bud of leafy vegetables. Hearts of palm are a separate culinary ingredient from a different plant part.
常見錯誤
5. courage, determination, or emotional strength, especially when you continue desp
courage, determination, or emotional strength, especially when you continue despite fear or difficulty.
The team lost the game but they played with a lot of heart.
collocation: play with heart / fight with heart
It took a lot of heart for Tendai to speak in front of that crowd.
collocation: take a lot of heart (to do something)
The climbers lost heart when the weather turned against them.
Quinn took heart from the encouraging words of the older coach.
The protesters showed great heart by continuing their march in the rain.
- courage
more direct and common; 'heart' adds emotional warmth that 'courage' lacks
- determination
focuses on persistence rather than emotional strength
- spirit
overlaps with heart but also suggests enthusiasm and energy
- cowardice
lack of courage, opposite of having heart in the face of difficulty
用法筆記
Not used simply to mean 'bravery' in everyday speech. Typically appears in set phrases: 'take heart', 'lose heart', 'have the heart to (do something)'. Often in sports contexts describing effort beyond skill.
常見錯誤
6. a design with two rounded lobes on top coming together at a pointed tip below, w
a design with two rounded lobes on top coming together at a pointed tip below, widely recognised as standing for romantic attachment or fondness.
Élise drew a small red heart on the card for her mother.
collocation: draw a heart
The chocolate box was decorated with pink hearts all over it.
Anong wore a silver necklace with a tiny heart pendant.
The children cut out paper hearts and hung them on the classroom wall.
用法筆記
Very common in Valentine's Day decorations, emoji (❤️), and jewellery. The symbol is distinct from the anatomical heart shape.
7. in a standard deck of playing cards, the suit identified by red heart symbols, t
in a standard deck of playing cards, the suit identified by red heart symbols, typically ranking above clubs and diamonds in many games.
Jiwoo played the queen of hearts and won the trick.
phrase: [rank] of hearts
In the card game, hearts is considered the highest suit.
Christopher held three hearts and needed one more for a flush.
The hearts suit uses a red colour that matches the diamonds.
用法筆記
Always lowercase unless beginning a sentence. The suit name can be used as uncountable ('hearts is trumps') or plural ('I have four hearts'). Often capitalised on scoreboards and in card-game rules.
8. a playing card belonging to the hearts suit, bearing red heart symbols printed o
a playing card belonging to the hearts suit, bearing red heart symbols printed on its face.
Tanvi had only two cards left in her hand — a seven and a heart.
A heart is the card you need to complete the winning hand.
The dealer slid a single heart across the table to Andrew.
Each player must follow suit and play a heart if they have one.
用法筆記
This sense overlaps with sense 7 but refers to the physical card itself rather than the abstract suit. A 'heart' (sense 8) is a card from the 'hearts' suit (sense 7).
heart — verb
1. to feel strong liking or affection for a person, activity, or thing, expressing
to feel strong liking or affection for a person, activity, or thing, expressing wholehearted enthusiasm in an informal way.
Quinn hearts this café — the coffee is the best in town.
informal: used as a verb in casual speech/writing
The children heart their new teacher because she makes every lesson fun.
Eli hearts hiking in the mountains more than any other activity.
Layla's grandmother hearts the old songs she grew up listening to.
- hate
the direct opposite of enthusiastic like/love
文法句型
heart + noun phrase
heart + -ing verb
用法筆記
Highly informal — common in social media, casual texting, and merchandise slogans ('I heart NY'). Rare in formal writing. As a verb, 'heart' is much less frequent than 'love' or 'like' and carries a playful or youthful tone.
常見錯誤
2. to show approval or appreciation for an online post, photo, or comment by clicki
to show approval or appreciation for an online post, photo, or comment by clicking a heart-shaped button on social media platforms.
Jiwoo hearted Camila's wedding photo within seconds of it being posted.
pattern: heart + noun phrase (social media content)
Over a thousand users hearted the post about the rescue of the lost dog.
Padma always hearts her friend's travel photos on Instagram.
Andrew scrolled through the feed and hearted every post about the fundraiser.
- like
more general term for social media approval regardless of icon shape
文法句型
heart + noun phrase (online content)
用法筆記
Platform-specific: Twitter/X uses 'like' (heart icon), Instagram uses 'heart' (the verb is 'to like', though the icon is a heart). The verb 'heart' for social-media actions is still emerging and varies by platform terminology. On some platforms users say 'I hearted it' while on others they say 'I liked it' regardless of the icon shape.