sick at heart

sick at heart idiom
Grieving, very disappointed, dejected, as in We were sick at heart when we learned of her predicament. This idiom, which transfers heart disease to unhappiness, was first recorded in 1581.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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