stealing hearts

Meanings

1. 1phraseidiomfigurative

   Charming people and making them love or admire you, often gradually or in a playful way.

   Grammar: Used as a continuous verb phrase; it often follows a form of 'be' or a verb like 'start' or 'keep'.

   Patterns

   • be stealing hearts
   • start stealing hearts
   • keep stealing hearts

   The puppy was stealing hearts at the adoption event.

   She has been stealing hearts on stage since she was a child.

   His easy smile kept stealing hearts wherever he went.

2. 2phraseidiomfigurative

   Winning someone's romantic love, often without intending to.

   Grammar: Often used with a possessive before 'heart', as in 'stealing my heart'.

   Patterns

   • stealing someone's heart
   • stealing my heart
   • stealing her heart

   He didn't plan on stealing her heart, but he did.

   The singer's love song is about stealing someone's heart.

   They met at a wedding, and he began stealing her heart that night.

Common combinations

stealing hearts everywhere

The new band is stealing hearts everywhere they play.

stealing hearts on screen

The young actor is stealing hearts on screen.

stealing hearts with a smile

She is stealing hearts with a smile.

busy stealing hearts

The kitten was busy stealing hearts at the shelter.

Synonyms and how they differ

winning hearts

Similar, but often suggests a more deliberate effort to gain support or affection.

captivating

An adjective meaning holding someone's attention completely; it does not specifically mean making people love you.

charming

Describes the effect on people rather than the action of winning them over.

Opposites

Word family

heartbreaker noun

A person who breaks others' hearts by ending relationships.

heart-stealer noun

A person or thing that easily wins people's love or affection.

Commonly confused: stealing hearts or stealing thunder?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “stealing hearts”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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