Pronunciation: [hˈɑːt] (IPA) 
The word "heart" is spelled with five letters but contains only four sounds in English. In International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) transcription, it is represented as /hɑːrt/. The initial "h" is silent, while the "a" sound is pronounced like the "a" in "car". The "r" is pronounced, as in most cases in British English, and the "t" at the end of the word is also pronounced. In American English, the "t" at the end is typically silent.
Heart (noun):
1. The muscular organ located in the chest cavity, responsible for pumping blood throughout the body in order to supply oxygen and nutrients to the tissues and organs.
2. The seat and center of one's emotions, feelings, and affections; the human soul regarded as the source of happiness, sorrow, love, compassion, or other emotional states.
3. A symbol or representation of love, courage, compassion, or affection, depicted as a rounded shape with two rounded top lobes meeting at a point at the bottom.
4. The core or essence of something, often referring to the most important or vital part.
5. A person's character, moral nature, or integrity, often associated with kindness, generosity, sincerity, or good intentions.
6. An object of great importance or significance to someone, often referring to a cherished possession, a loved one, or a cause that one deeply believes in.
7. An idiomatic expression used when referring to determination, bravery, or in spoken language, courage and audacity.
The heart, both a physical organ and a metaphor, holds a complex array of meanings. It is not only the vital organ that pumps blood but also the center of emotions, love, and compassion. Symbolically, it represents affection, bravery, and generosity. Metaphorically, it can describe one's character or the essence of something. Moreover, the heart can denote a cherished object, individual, or belief. Ultimately, whether referred to physically or metaphorically, the heart encompasses the core elements that define our existence, connecting the biological with the emotional, the tangible with the intangible.
A hollow muscular organ which receives the blood from the veins and propels it into the arteries. It is divided by a musculo-membranous septum into two halves-right or venous and left or arterial, each of which consists of a receiving chamber (auricle or atrium) and an ejecting chamber (ventricle); the orifices through which the blood enters and leaves the ventricles are provided with valves, the mitral and the aortic for the left ventricle, the tricuspid and the pulmonary for the right ventricle.
A practical medical dictionary. By Stedman, Thomas Lathrop. Published 1920.
• The well-known organ in animals which, by alternate contracting and expanding, sends the blood through the arteries, to be again received by it from the veins; the vital, inner, or chief part of anything; the centre or interior; the seat of the affections and passions; disposition of mind.
• To become close or hard in the centre, as a cabbage.
Etymological and pronouncing dictionary of the English language. By Stormonth, James, Phelp, P. H. Published 1874.
* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.
The word "heart" originated from the Old English word "heorte". It can be traced back further to the Proto-Germanic word "hertô" and the Proto-Indo-European word "ḱḗr". These words eventually evolved into various Germanic and Celtic languages, as well as other Indo-European languages with similar words for "heart". The term "heart" refers to the organ that pumps blood in vertebrates, but it has also come to represent emotions, feelings, and the seat of one's innermost self.
