Wear your heart on your sleeve
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
To show emotions openly, with no guard.
Origin
From Shakespeare's 1604 'Othello,' where Iago scorns 'wear my heart upon my sleeve'-possibly tied to jousts, where knights wore ladies' ribbons on sleeves as tokens. A 1540s text hints at it too. By the 19th century, Dickens' 1865 'Our Mutual Friend' used it, growing into a poetic idiom of emotional daring.
Variants
- Heart on sleeve
- Wear the heart
Usage Examples
- She wears her heart on her sleeve; cries at every movie.
- He wore his heart on his sleeve, confessing his love.
- Wearing your heart on your sleeve makes you easy to read.
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