single-hearted
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of single-hearted
First recorded in 1570–80
Explanation
If your friend is single-hearted, she's the same person to everyone; she knows what she thinks, means what she says, and puts her whole self into whatever she does. And you are lucky to know her! Single-hearted is similar in meaning to wholehearted: The image it brings to mind is of the person's heart, or center, not being divided into parts. It's not split between conflicting loyalties or motives, not divided between thought and action, or between a secret inner self and the self shown to the world. Single-hearted people are not always second-guessing their ideas and plans — they make a decision and stick to it, set a goal and then go for it with all they've got.
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.
"Through this election we will fully display the might of the single-hearted unity of our army and people," said Hyon Byong-chol, chairman of a preparatory committee for one of the sub-districts in the election.
From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2014
This latter had always been his bearing towards Vivien, even in the early days of impulsive single-hearted devotion.
From Second String by Hope, Anthony
With all these qualities, natural and acquired, I never saw a more amiable or single-hearted youth.
From The Life, Letters and Work of Frederic Leighton Volume I by Barrington, Mrs. Russell
Utterly single-hearted, she lay there, brave and uncomplaining to the last, and seemed the only one unconscious of the pathos of her position.
From One Year Abroad by Howard, Blanche Willis
But in the exiled noble Belarius, and the two sons of Cymbeline whom he has stolen in infancy and brought up with him in a wild life in the mountains, single-hearted nobility rules.
From An Introduction to Shakespeare by MacCracken, H. N.
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.
