Meaning & use
generous heart
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Meanings
nounsingular
A kind and giving nature; the quality of being willing to help others and share what you have.
Grammar: Usually used with a possessive or 'a': she has a generous heart. It is not used in the plural in this sense.
Patterns
- have a generous heart
- someone with a generous heart
- show a generous heart
My grandmother had a generous heart and always fed anyone who came to the door.
He may not say much, but he has a generous heart and quietly pays for his nephew's books.
It takes a generous heart to forgive someone who has hurt you.
nouncountablefigurative
A person who is kind and giving, especially one who helps those in need.
Grammar: Used to talk about a person, often after 'a' or with 'the': a generous heart in the community. Plural: generous hearts.
Patterns
- a generous heart
- be a generous heart
- generous hearts in the community
The shelter was built by a generous heart who never wanted any publicity.
She is a generous heart; whenever a neighbor is sick, she cooks for the whole family.
Word forms
| plural | generous hearts |
|---|
Common combinations
- have a generous heart
- You have to have a generous heart to do that job every day.
- a kind and generous heart
- Everyone remembers her as a kind and generous heart.
- with a generous heart
- He gave the money with a generous heart, not expecting anything back.
- a generous heart and a warm smile
- The new teacher won them over with a generous heart and a warm smile.
Synonyms and how they differ
- generosity
- This is the abstract noun for the quality itself; use it when you talk about the trait, not the person.
- kindness
- This focuses on being gentle and caring rather than on giving or sharing.
- big-hearted
- This adjective describes the same warm, giving character and is more common in everyday speech.
Opposites
Word family
- generously adverb
- In a way that shows you are willing to give or share.
- generosity noun
- The quality of being willing to give money, help, or time.
- generous adjective
- Willing to give more than is usual or expected.
Commonly confused: generous heart or generous hart?
generous heart vs generous hart
A 'hart' is an old word for a male deer, so this spelling makes no sense here. Keep 'heart' for the organ and the kind nature.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'generous heart' most naturally?
Choose one answer.
Option 0 uses the fixed pattern 'have a generous heart' to describe someone's kind nature. Option 1 wrongly adds an infinitive of purpose after the noun phrase; option 2 confuses the phrase with the physical organ; option 3 uses the noun phrase where an adverb or adjective is needed.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “generous heart”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.