What does this saying mean: My heart is on my sleeve?

Question

What does this saying mean: My heart is on my sleeve?

Answer 1

you are dying because it belongs in you chest

Answer 2

"Wearing you heart on your sleeve" means that everyone can tell without asking how you feel in a certain situation or about a certain person.

Answer 3

This simply means that you show your emotions, and that you do not hide behind a front

Answer 4

From "Brush Up Your Shakespeare!" by Michael Macrone (Gramercy Books, New York, 1990):

"Heart on My Sleeve.

IAGO:

It is sure as you are Roderigo,

Were I the Moor, I would not be Iago.

In following him, I follow but myself;

Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,

But seeming so, for my peculiar end;

For when my outward action doth demonstrate

The native act and figure of my heart

In complement extern, 'tis not long after

But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve.

For daws to peck at. I am not what I am.

Othello, Act 1, scene 1, 56-65

.when your heart is displayed so openly, as if upon your sleeve, the 'daws' (jackdaws) will accept the invitation to pick away at it. By admitting to his treachery, Iago would seem, in effect, to 'wear his heart on his sleeve' for Roderigo. Yet, while Iago tells the truth, he doesn't tell all of it, and keeps hidden his true 'native act and figure' - his intention to dupe Roderigo out of even more jewels and cash."

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board...

I will wear my heart upon my sleeve

Meaning

Display your feelings openly, for all to see.

Origin

From Shakespeare's Othello, 1604:

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/19270...

People who wear their heart on their sleeve express their emotions freely and openly, for all to see. Example: "She is kind of player who never hides how she's feeling. One look at her and you know if she's winning or losing." Reply: "She wears her heart on her sleeve."

You can see how these people feel as easily as if they were "wearing" their "heart" on the "sleeve" of their shirt. Example: "Some people love him and some people hate him, but my brother always lets you know how he feels. He wears his heart on his sleeve."

People who wear their heart on their sleeve do not hold back their emotions, for good or for bad. It is clear how they feel in each moment. Example: "She's a shy person. She's never been one to wear her heart on her sleeve."

http://www.goenglish.com/WearYourHeartOn...

Idioms: wear one's heart on one's sleeve

Also, pin one's heart on one's sleeve. Openly show one's feelings, especially amorous ones. For example, You can't help but see how he feels about her; he wears his heart on his sleeve. This expression alludes to the former custom of tying a woman's favor to her lover's sleeve, thereby announcing their attachment. Shakespeare had it in Othello (1:1): "But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve for daws to peck at."

http://www.answers.com/topic/wear-your-h...

Answer 5

Other than implying that others can see your emotion, I also understand it to mean emotional vulnerability--that your emotions are exposed instead of protected.