Hearth - Definition

n 1: an open recess in a wall at the base of a chimney where a
fire can be built; "the fireplace was so large you could
walk inside it"; "he laid a fire in the hearth and lit it";
"the hearth was black with the charcoal of many fires"
[syn: fireplace, hearth, open fireplace]
2: home symbolized as a part of the fireplace; "driven from
hearth and home"; "fighting in defense of their firesides"
[syn: hearth, fireside]
3: an area near a fireplace (usually paved and extending out
into a room); "they sat on the hearth and warmed themselves
before the fire" [syn: hearth, fireside]