sweetheart

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A person you love romantically; a boyfriend or girlfriend.

   Grammar: Countable; can be used for any gender and often suggests a long-term or serious relationship.

   Patterns

   • someone's sweetheart
   • a high-school sweetheart

   He married his high-school sweetheart.

   She's my sweetheart; we've been together for five years.

2. 2nouncountableinformal

   An affectionate way to address someone you care about, such as a child, friend, or partner.

   Grammar: Used as a form of address, like 'dear' or 'honey'; often at the end of a sentence.

   Patterns

   • sweetheart, ...
   • Thank you, sweetheart.

   Don't worry, sweetheart, everything will be fine.

   Thanks for your help, sweetheart.

Word forms

Common combinations

childhood sweetheart

He married his childhood sweetheart.

high-school sweetheart

She's still with her high-school sweetheart.

college sweetheart

They met as college sweethearts.

sweetheart deal

The company got a sweetheart deal on the office space.

sweetheart neckline

The dress has a sweetheart neckline.

Synonyms and how they differ

darling

Similar affectionate term, but can also be used for a much-loved person of any age, not just a romantic partner.

honey

Informal and often used between romantic partners or to address a stranger, but can sound old-fashioned or overly familiar.

lover

More formal and often suggests a sexual relationship; not usually used as a term of address.

partner

Neutral and formal; can refer to a spouse or long-term companion without indicating gender.

Word family

sweet adjective

Pleasant, kind, or tasting like sugar.

sweetly adverb

In a pleasant or kind way.

sweetness noun

The quality of being sweet.

sweeten verb

To make something sweet or more pleasant.

Commonly confused: sweetheart or sweetheart neckline?

Practice

Make it your own

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

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