What it means
Means someone’s genuinely kind and generous, the sort who’ll drop everything to help you out and never make a song and dance about it. If they’ve got a heart of gold, they’ll lend a hand, stick the kettle on, and still say sorry for the fuss. Not fancy, just proper good egg behaviour.
Usage examples
"Jen’s got a heart of gold, gave her last fiver to the bloke outside Tesco, then turned up with Jaffa Cakes and a fresh brew."
"He grumbles a lot but he has a heart of gold, first to help when you are stuck."
"She volunteers every weekend, an absolute heart of gold."
"Don’t let his moaning fool you, the man’s got a heart of gold and he’d drive across town at midnight if you were in a jam."
"Aisha’s all heart of gold, dropped off soup, sorted the kids, then acted like it was nothing."
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Where it comes from
It’s an old English compliment that goes back to the 1500s and shows up in Shakespeare. Gold was the image for something precious, pure, and top-tier, so calling someone a heart of gold meant their inner self was warm, generous, and properly good, even if they looked a bit rough round the edges.
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