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Synonyms

heart attack

American  

noun

Pathology.

  1. damage to an area of heart muscle that is deprived of oxygen, usually due to blockage of a diseased coronary artery, typically accompanied by chest pain radiating down one or both arms, the severity of the attack varying with the extent and location of the damage; myocardial infarction.

heart attack British  

noun

  1. any sudden severe instance of abnormal heart functioning, esp coronary thrombosis

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
heart attack Scientific  

  1. Necrosis of a region of the heart muscle caused by an interruption in the supply of blood to the heart, usually as a result of occlusion of a coronary artery resulting from coronary artery disease. Symptoms typically include sudden, crushing chest pain, nausea, and sweating. Characteristic changes in the electrocardiogram are used to diagnose heart attacks.

  2. Also called myocardial infarction

heart attack Cultural  

  1. An episode of heart failure or the stopping of normal heart function; a coronary thrombosis. Symptoms of a heart attack include pain and pressure in the chest, which often spread to the shoulder, arm, and neck. Today, physicians tend to define heart attack in terms of muscle damage to the heart caused by oxygen deprivation.

Etymology

Origin of heart attack

First recorded in 1925–30

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.

That person is Faith Harrison, 24, from Little Minsterley, who survived a seven-hour heart attack at the age of 22 in January 2024.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

But the people of Redding nearly had a collective heart attack last August when the restaurant’s longtime owners, sisters Julie Malik and Nell Cox, made a stunning announcement: Damburger is for sale.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

The protective effects were especially strong for inflammatory conditions like arthritis, serious cardiovascular problems such as heart attack and stroke, and dementia.

From Science Daily • Mar. 30, 2026

The more calcium you have in your heart, the lower your LDL cholesterol should be to help reduce your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

“I kept saying, ‘You’re not having a heart attack.’

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

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.