also kindhearted, 1530s; see kind (adj.) + -hearted. Related: Kindheartedly, kindheartedness.
Entries linking to kind-hearted
kind adj.
"friendly, deliberately doing good to others," Middle English kinde, from Old English (ge)cynde "natural, native, innate," originally "with the feeling of relatives for each other," from Proto-Germanic *kundi- "natural, native," from *kunjam "family" (see kin), with collective or generalizing prefix *ga- and abstract suffix *-iz. The word rarely appeared in Old English without the prefix, but Old English also had it as a word-forming element -cund "born of, of a particular nature" (see kind (n.)). Sense development probably is from "with natural feelings," to "well-disposed" (c. 1300), "benign, compassionate, loving, full of tenderness" (c. 1300).
-hearted
figurative element in combinations, "at heart," also "having a heart" (of a specified kind), c. 1200, first attested in hard-hearted; see heart (n.). Related: -heartedly.