take to heart
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
To consider something carefully and be emotionally affected by it
Literally: to physically take something to one's heart
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
She took her mother's words to heart and changed her behavior
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “take to heart” mean?
To consider something carefully and be emotionally affected by it Literally: to physically take something to one's heart
Is “take to heart” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.