cardiac

American  

[kahr-dee-ak] / ˈkɑr diˌæk /

adjective

1. of or relating to the heart.

   cardiac disease.

2. of or relating to the esophageal portion of the stomach.

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noun

1. Medicine/Medical. a cardiac remedy.

2. a person with heart disease.

cardiac British  

/ ˈkɑːdɪˌæk /

adjective

1. of or relating to the heart

2. of or relating to the portion of the stomach connected to the oesophagus

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noun

1. a person with a heart disorder

2. obsolete a drug that stimulates the heart muscle

cardiac Scientific  

/ kär′dē-ăk′ /

1. Relating to or involving the heart.

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Other Word Forms

• postcardiac adjective
• precardiac adjective

Etymology

Origin of cardiac

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English or directly from Middle French cardiaque, from Latin cardiacus, from Greek kardiakós, equivalent to kardí(a) heart + -akos -ac

Explanation

Cardiac describes anything that's connected or related to the heart. During a cardiac exam, a doctor listens to your heartbeat and takes your pulse. The adjective cardiac is most often used in a medical context: a doctor who operates on people's hearts is a cardiac surgeon, and an irregular heart beat is called "cardiac arrhythmia." It's common for both medical and non-medical people to call a heart attack "cardiac arrest." The word comes from the French cardiaque, which is rooted in the Greek kardiakos, "pertaining to the heart," from kardia, "heart."

Example Sentences

Spencer Stevenson nearly died on his way to work one morning in December, as he suddenly suffered a cardiac arrest after getting off his train.

From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026

Put tiny versions into cardiac patients to regulate heartbeats.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

That morning, she was in full cardiac arrest.

From Slate • Mar. 29, 2026

“It’s just getting back to where it was before the incident,” LeBron said Friday, referencing Bronny’s cardiac arrest caused by a congenital heart defect on July 24, 2023.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 28, 2026

And my grandmother, whose constitutional gloom had broken out into full cardiac thunder, looked at her brother, as she once had her own shadow, and felt that something was missing.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides