# hearth

/ˈhɑɹθ/ (US) · /hˈɑːθ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/hearth
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 1. part of a fireplace

noun · CEFR B2

the floor of a fireplace, usually made of stone or brick, that extends into a room.

For teachers: the floor of a fireplace, typically consisting of a stone or brick slab that extends into the room to protect the floor from heat.

- The cat lay sleeping on the warm stone hearth after the fire went out.
- The renovation involved replacing the cracked Victorian tiles on the hearth with a single, polished slab of dark granite.

### 2. home and family

noun · CEFR C1 · Literary

a word for the home or the center of family life.

For teachers: a metonym for the home, domestic life, or the family circle.

- They were happy to return to their own hearth after months of traveling.
- In many traditional cultures, the goddess of the hearth was worshipped as the protector of the family and the domestic sphere.

### 3. industrial furnace part

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

the bottom part of a large oven used for melting metal.

For teachers: the lowest part of a metallurgical furnace where the molten metal collects.

- The molten iron gathered at the bottom of the furnace hearth.
- Engineers inspected the refractory lining of the hearth to ensure it could withstand the extreme temperatures of the smelting process.

## Examples

- The cat slept peacefully on the warm stone hearth.
- After a long day of hiking in the cold, we gathered around the hearth to share stories and dry our boots.
- In many traditional cultures, the hearth served as the literal and metaphorical heart of the household, providing both physical warmth and a communal space for ancestral storytelling.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.