heart-searching
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of heart-searching
First recorded in 1640–50; heart ( def. ) + searching ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the aftermath there will be much heart-searching and even recriminations that this massive stockpile of ammonium nitrate was left unattended in such a sensitive place as the docks.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 5, 2020
When Elizabeth, played with exquisite subtlety by Clare Foy, learns that her pledge was based on faulty advice served up by her lugubrious private secretary, Tommy Lascelles, she is full of consternation and hesitant heart-searching.
From New York Times ● Nov. 23, 2016
What heart-searching words Christ had spoken to His disciples on love and humility, on being the least, and, like Himself, the servant of all, on denying self, and taking the cross, and losing the life.
From The Ministry of Intercession A Plea for More Prayer by Murray, Andrew
It pleased Medenham to mystify Dale, who was, if possible, more taciturn than ever since those heart-searching experiences at Gloucester and Hereford.
From Cynthia's Chauffeur by Tracy, Louis
She needed no heart-searching to decide where her duty lay; and, without hesitation, she returned hotfoot to Belgium, where she had an intuition that she would be wanted.
From A Noble Woman The Life-Story of Edith Cavell by Protheroe, Ernest
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
