'heartlike' originates from Old English elements: 'heorte' (heart) and the suffix '-like' from Old English 'līc' meaning 'form' or 'like'.

'heart' comes from Old English 'heorte', which became Middle English 'herte' and then modern English 'heart'; the suffix '-like' comes from Old English 'līc' (meaning 'body, form') and developed into the productive adjectival suffix '-like' in Middle and Modern English, combining to form 'heartlike'.

Initially it literally combined the sense 'heart' + 'like' to mean 'having the form of a heart'; over time it has been used both for physical resemblance ('heart-shaped') and figuratively to indicate 'having heart-like qualities' (kindness, warmth).