heartland
Americannoun
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heartlands
plural
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the part of a region considered essential to the viability and survival of the whole, especially a central land area relatively invulnerable to attack and capable of economic and political self-sufficiency.
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any central area, as of a state, nation, or continent.
a vineyard in California's heartland.
noun
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the central region of a country or continent
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the core or most vital area
the industrial heartland of England
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of heartland
Vocabulary lists containing heartland
Political Geography - Middle School
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Political Geography - High School
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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:
As the heartland rocker brings his latest tour to the Hollywood Bowl, here’s a critical rundown of his best-known songs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Seawater is seeping into Italy's longest river as the waterway starts to run dry in the heatwave, hitting a farming heartland that produces the milk for Parmesan cheese.
From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026
If Boston was Scotland's home from home, fans are now in football's South American heartland.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
Visitor dispatches have also focused on the cinematic appeal of everyday Americana—from our enormous trucks and big highways to In-N-Out Burger, the Florida Keys and the heartland in between.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
Archaeologists excavating 30,000-year-old Sapiens sites in the European heartland occasionally find there seashells from the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
In Germany’s industrial heartlands, companies are cutting production and struggling to ship goods along the Rhine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Chinese brands are now making inroads into Volkswagen’s European heartlands, and President Trump’s tariffs have added billions of dollars in costs to its import-reliant U.S. business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
The French president is also eager for Sharaa to maintain his pledge to protect Syria's minorities, after sectarian bloodshed in its Alawite and Druze heartlands last year.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
Reform UK has been picking up seats in former Labour heartlands in the north of England and the Midlands, including Wigan, Bolton, Salford and Halton.
From BBC ● May 8, 2026
The Conservatives are fighting to hold on to their heartlands in the north-east and along the southern border.
From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026
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.
