Would you like to let someone know that something you have done or said is a true emotional gesture, or a show of love? Would you like to extend thanks to someone, and say the same? 'From the bottom of my heart' is a common English expression that says just those things. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this saying.
Meaning
The phrase 'from the bottom of my heart' is a positive turn-of-phrase that is most common when it is used as an expression of kindness, thankfulness, or gratitude to someone else.
The phrase is usually said from the speaker to another person.
The saying 'from the bottom of my heart' is meant to be metaphorical and mean that it comes from 'a place of deep feelings' or heavy emotion.
Something can be 'from the bottom of my heart' and it is usually a reference to gratefulness or thanks, though might also accompany a gift when said in some (but not all) instances.
If you are glad for something or would like to thank them for a gift or gesture, it is 'from the bottom of my heart' that you would show or extend your gratitude. Though rare, the phrase can also apply to condolences for kindness after loss.
There are several ways to adapt the phrase when referring to someone else in the third person ('from the bottom of her/his/their heart') or when referring to several people ('from the bottom of our/their hearts').
The phrase 'from the bottom of my heart' carries positive implications towards the subject the speaker is addressing.
The phrase can imply sympathies, gratitude, and sincerity.
Example Usage
“I'd like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this award. I don't know what I would have done without it.”
“We'd like to say sorry from the bottom of our hearts about the fact that our pet squirrel killed your grandmother. It really wasn't right, and she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“Thank you for this, I really mean it from the bottom of my heart.”
“Guys, I mean it from the bottom of my heart. I didn't do it, and I'm not supposed to be serving a twenty-year sentence for what I did to that cow when the clock struck midnight.”
Origin
According to most reliable etymology resources, the phrase 'from the bottom of my heart' originated somewhere in the 1600s after which it became a popular expression that was often borrowed from by other writers.
One of the first instances of the phrase 'from the bottom of my heart' is reported to originate from the Virgil epic Aeneid: this makes the origin of this phrase rooted in philosophy and myth, where it was likely absorbed into English after a translation of this.
The phrase is likely to have risen in popularity thanks to the printing press, and subsequent popular media and translations after this.
The phrase remained popular as a thanks, helped in part back into the market by greeting card companies: from here, it receives a fair amount of modern mentions as a social media saying and pop culture reference.
Phrases Similar to From the Bottom of My Heart
- Sincerely
Phrases Opposite to From the Bottom of My Heart
- N/a
What is the Correct Saying?
- [thank you] from the bottom of my/our/their hearts
- from the bottom of my/our/their heart
Ways People May Say From the Bottom of My Heart Incorrectly
There are several ways in which the common phrase 'from the bottom of my heart' can be used in the wrong way, or understood in another context.
The phrase is metaphorical, and is used to imply gratefulness, sincerity or thanks to the subject it is being said to.
The phrase is never used in the plural form, as something can't be 'from the bottom of my hearts'.
Acceptable Ways to Phrase From the Bottom of My Heart
The correct way to use the phrase 'from the bottom of my heart' is to use it to express thankfulness or gratitude to the speaker.
Someone can say 'from the bottom of my heart' to imply sincerity in what is being said, or to imply that something is said (or sometimes given) with a lot of deep feelings.