heartbreak
Americannoun
-
heartbreaks
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of heartbreak
Explanation
Heartbreak is a feeling of overwhelming sadness and grief. As Elvis sang, "Well, since my baby left me, I found a new place to dwell. Well, it's down at the end of Lonely Street, at Heartbreak Hotel." Heartbreak can result from the breakup of a romantic relationship, or even the end of a platonic friendship — the heartbreak of having your best childhood pal move to another country can last a long time. The deep sorrow you feel when a loved one dies is an even more lasting and terrible kind of heartbreak. You can also use this word in an exaggerated way: "The soccer team's heartbreak was evident when they lost that match."
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.
See Examples For:
Thirty years since Berger, Smicer, Poborsky and Nedved endured their north London heartbreak, the creaking old stadium has long ago been substituted out and replaced by a Wembley fit for the 21st Century.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
Many years later, he addressed that heartbreak in a video on social media addressing his former coaches.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
“There are no words to adequately express our heartbreak over the loss of our beloved Chris Spatola,” the Krzyzewski family said in a statement through Duke.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
But after the heartbreak she’s experienced, Sally’s had enough.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
He had to get out of that claustrophobic miniature of a heartbreak house.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
"We have been through injury, heartbreaks, losses. We have been losers at times in the most important moments," Zverev said.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
For Leinster, however, it is a fifth defeat in the final since they claimed their fourth title in 2018, with the past four heartbreaks also coming at the hands of French opposition.
From BBC ● May 23, 2026
Yet even Honor is cowed by the household’s steely Yugoslav maid, Greta, who dismisses all heartbreaks and hysterics with the motto, “play stupid games, win stupid prizes.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
It’s the soundtrack of first loves and first heartbreaks, rotten days, soured friendships and sweet hopes for tomorrow.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2026
She was there for your first crushes and heartbreaks, your party dresses and spins at sophisticated states like anomie.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
