bleeding heart

bleeding heart
bleeding heart type of flowering plant, so called from 1690s. In the sense of "person excessively sympathetic" (especially toward those the speaker deems not to deserve it) is attested by 1951, but said by many to have been popularized with reference to liberals (especially Eleanor Roosevelt) in 1930s by newspaper columnist Westbrook Pegler (1894-1969), though quotations are wanting; bleeding in a figurative sense of "generous" is from late 16c., and the notion of one's heart bleeding as a figure of emotional anguish is from late 14c., but the exact image here may be the "bleeding heart of Jesus."

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • bleeding heart — bleeding heart, adj. 1. any of various plants belonging to the genus Dicentra, of the fumitory family, esp. D. spectabilis, a common garden plant having long, one sided clusters of rose or red heart shaped flowers. 2. a person who makes an… …   Universalium

  • Bleeding heart — Bleeding heart, bleeding heart or Bleeding Heart may refer to:Organisms: * Doves in the genus Gallicolumba * Flowering plants in the genus Dicentra of the fumitory family * Flowering plants in the genus Clerodendrum (glorybowers or bagflowers) of …   Wikipedia

  • bleeding heart — bleeding hearts also bleeding heart N COUNT: oft N n (disapproval) If you describe someone as a bleeding heart, you are criticizing them for being sympathetic towards people who are poor and suffering, without doing anything practical to help …   English dictionary

  • bleeding heart — also .bleeding heart liberal n informal someone who feels sympathy for poor people or criminals, in a way that you think is not practical or helpful …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • bleeding heart — A bleeding heart is a person who is excessively sympathetic towards other people …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • bleeding heart — ► NOUN 1) informal, derogatory a person considered to be excessively soft hearted or liberal. 2) a plant with red heart shaped flowers …   English terms dictionary

  • bleeding heart — n. 1. any of several dicentras, esp. a common garden perennial (Dicentra spectabilis) with racemes of drooping, deep pink, heart shaped flowers 2. a person regarded as too sentimental or too liberal in dealing with social problems …   English World dictionary

  • bleeding heart — noun count someone who shows too much sympathy for people with social or financial problems, in a way that you think is annoying and not practical …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • bleeding heart — noun 1. garden plant having deep pink drooping heart shaped flowers • Syn: ↑lyreflower, ↑lyre flower, ↑Dicentra spectabilis • Hypernyms: ↑herb, ↑herbaceous plant • Member Holonyms: ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • bleeding heart — UK / US noun [countable] Word forms bleeding heart : singular bleeding heart plural bleeding hearts someone who shows too much sympathy for people with social or financial problems, in a way that you think is annoying and not practical …   English dictionary

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