one's heart sinks

Meanings

phrase

figurativelyTo experience great sadness.
The door opened and her aunt's maid, Amanda, smiled. "Miss Elizabeth, it's wonderful to see you. Mrs. Watson and your father are waiting for you in her study." Her heart sank. She'd hoped for some time alone with her aunt.
2014, Janet Lee Barton, A Home for Her Heart, Harlequin, →ISBN, page 13

Cite this entry

APA

one's heart sinks. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/one's%20heart%20sinks

MLA

“one's heart sinks.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/one's%20heart%20sinks. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “one's heart sinks,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/one's%20heart%20sinks.