heart balm

English

Alternative forms

• heart-balm
• heartbalm

Etymology

From heart +‎ balm.

Noun

heart balm (countable and uncountable, plural heart balms)

1. (idiomatic) Something that soothes a person's fears or emotions.
   • 1974, Lawrence Durrell, Monsieur, Faber & Faber, published 1992, page 211:

     So many things, however, are a genuine heartbalm like the prickles of the Pleiades rising on the night.

2. A fine for breach of promise (to marry).

Translations

idiomatic: something soothing

• Finnish: palsamia sydämelle
• German: Balsam für die Seele m
• Romanian: please add this translation if you can