1. (

• heart ,
• bosom

) the locus of feelings and intuitions; "in your heart you know it is true"; "her story would melt your bosom" ;

2. (

• heart ,
• pump ,
• ticker

) the hollow muscular organ located behind the sternum and between the lungs; its rhythmic contractions move the blood through the body; "he stood still, his heart thumping wildly" ;

3. (

• heart ,
• mettle ,
• nerve ,
• spunk

) the courage to carry on; "he kept fighting on pure spunk"; "you haven't got the heart for baseball" ;

4. (

• center ,
• centre ,
• middle ,
• heart ,
• eye

) 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" ;

5. (

• kernel ,
• substance ,
• core ,
• center ,
• centre ,
• essence ,
• gist ,
• heart ,
• heart_and_soul ,
• inwardness ,
• marrow ,
• meat ,
• nub ,
• pith ,
• sum ,
• nitty-gritty

) 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" ;

6. (

• heart ,
• spirit ,

) an inclination or tendency of a certain kind; "he had a change of heart" ;

7. (

• heart

) 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. (

• heart

) a firm rather dry variety meat (usually beef or veal); "a five-pound beef heart will serve six" ;

9. (

• affection ,
• affectionateness ,
• fondness ,
• tenderness ,
• heart ,
• warmness ,
• warmheartedness ,
• philia

) a positive feeling of liking; "he had trouble expressing the affection he felt"; "the child won everyone's heart"; "the warmness of his welcome made us feel right at home" ;

10. (

• heart

) a playing card in the major suit that has one or more red hearts on it; "he led the queen of hearts"; "hearts were trumps" ;