heartstring

noun

heart·string | \ ˈhärt-ˌstriŋ

Definition of heartstring

1 obsolete : a nerve once believed to sustain the heart

2 : the deepest emotions or affections —usually used in plural That movie really pulls at your heartstrings.

Heartstring Has a Medical History Example Sentences Learn More about heartstring

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Heartstring Has a Medical History

Before a song or movie or heart-shaped card accompanied by a box of chocolates could tug at your heartstrings, the job was more likely to be accomplished by a surgeon: the word heartstring used to refer to a nerve believed to sustain the heart. You might recognize the word's second syllable in the term "hamstring," which refers to both a group of tendons at the back of the knee and to any of three muscles at the backs of the upper legs. It's also apparent in a rare dialect term for the Achilles' tendon: "heel string." And in light of these terms, it's not surprising to know that "string" itself was at one time used independently to refer to cords like tendons and ligaments.

Examples of heartstring in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Packed with killer choreography and early 2000s hip-hop and R&B references, the project pulled nostalgically at the heartstrings while stunning viewers with Normani's flawless moves. — Erica Gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Normani Gave the Performance of the Year at the 2019 VMAs," 27 Aug. 2019 Viewed in isolation, the Papadopoulos prosecution is not the sort of thing that tugs at my heartstrings. — Andrew C. Mccarthy, National Review, "McCabe and Papadopoulos: Two-Tiered Justice," 24 Aug. 2019 The 2018/19 campaign wasn't short of narratives for people to latch onto, but few stories last season pulled at the heartstrings like that of AFC Ajax. — SI.com, "Donny van de Beek: 6 Things to Know About Ajax Star & Real Madrid's New Transfer Target," 27 June 2019 One way these robots tug on our heartstrings is by sporting the same sorts of anatomical features seen in babies and flesh-and-blood pets, such as big eyes and rounded bodies. — Kate Baggaley, NBC News, "New companion robots can't do much but make us love them," 23 June 2019 Other departures have tugged more sharply at the heartstrings. — Ann Killion, SFChronicle.com, "From joy to accounting: The cruel, cold end of a Warriors era," 11 July 2019 Birch pulled at heartstrings as little Dani, who goes from annoying little sister to everyone’s favorite and sassiest character. — Ale Russian, PEOPLE.com, "Hocus Pocus Turns 26! See the Sanderson Sisters and the Rest of the Cast Then and Now," 16 July 2019 So please, Spider-Verse directors, mend Holland’s broken heartstrings and put him in the sequel. — Nick Romano, EW.com, "Tom Holland reveals his cut Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse cameo," 28 June 2019 Your heartstrings could be pulled to an unlikely place at a book club or sorority meeting or through a mutual friend. — Sonja Marie, Essence, "Cancer, It's Time To Feel The Love! Here Are July 2019 Horoscopes For All," 1 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'heartstring.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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heartstring

Definition of heartstring

Heartstring Has a Medical History

Examples of heartstring in a Sentence

First Known Use of heartstring

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