hear
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to perceive by the ear.
Didn't you hear the doorbell?
- Synonyms:
- attend
-
to learn by the ear or by being told; be informed of.
to hear news.
- Synonyms:
- attend
-
to listen to; give or pay attention to.
They refused to hear our side of the argument.
-
to be among the audience at or of (something).
to hear a recital.
- Synonyms:
- attend
-
to give a formal, official, or judicial hearing to (something); consider officially, as a judge, sovereign, teacher, or assembly.
to hear a case.
-
to take or listen to the evidence or testimony of (someone).
to hear the defendant.
-
to listen to with favor, assent, or compliance.
- Antonyms:
- disregard
-
(of a computer) to perceive by speech recognition.
verb (used without object)
-
to be capable of perceiving sound by the ear; have the faculty of perceiving sound vibrations.
-
to receive information by the ear or otherwise.
to hear from a friend.
-
to listen with favor, assent, or compliance (often followed byof ).
I will not hear of your going.
-
(of a computer) to be capable of perceiving by speech recognition.
-
(used as an interjection in the phrase Hear! Hear! to express approval, as of a speech.)
verb
-
(tr) to perceive (a sound) with the sense of hearing
-
(tr; may take a clause as object) to listen to
did you hear what I said?
-
to be informed (of); receive information (about)
to hear of his success
have you heard?
-
law to give a hearing to (a case)
-
to listen (to) with favour, assent, etc
she wouldn't hear of it
-
to receive a letter, news, etc (from)
-
an exclamation used to show approval of something said
-
dialect to be told (about); learn (of)
Synonym Usage
Hear, listen apply to the perception of sound. To hear is to have such perception by means of the auditory sense: to hear distant bells. To listen is to give attention in order to hear and understand the meaning of a sound or sounds: to listen to what is being said; to listen for a well-known footstep.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
hearsimple
-
hearssimple
-
have heardperfect
-
has heardperfect
-
am hearingprogressive
-
are hearingprogressive
-
is hearingprogressive
-
have been hearingperfect progressive
-
has been hearingperfect progressive
Past
-
heardsimple
-
had heardperfect
-
was hearingprogressive
-
were hearingprogressive
-
had been hearingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hear
First recorded before 950; Middle English heren, Old English hēran, hīeran; cognate with Dutch horen, German hören, Old Norse heyra, Gothic hausjan; perhaps akin to Greek akoúein ( see acoustic)
Explanation
When you hear, you perceive a noise made by someone or something — like a person’s voice, the song of a bird, or the torturous sound of a ticking clock on a sleepless night. While hear generally means to perceive a noise, it has several senses, including to listen carefully, as to a story. If you hear from someone, they have contacted you in some way, such as by phone call, email, or even snail mail. A judge will also hear a case when she presides over a trial. And when you hear the news, you’ve gotten information or found something out. But you didn’t hear it from me.
Vocabulary lists containing hear
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Yet to listen to the brisk and sportive “Foreign Tongues” is to hear a band clearly going on instinct rather than overthinking the music à la any number of veteran acts in legacy-maintenance mode.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 10, 2026
"We had a scream together, she was so much fun, and it's a great loss, and it made me feel very sad to hear the news."
From BBC • Jul. 10, 2026
I want to hear your thoughts on this trend.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 10, 2026
They really didn’t want a debate that allowed people to hear from both “sides.”
From Salon • Jul. 10, 2026
He doesn’t have to say it for me to hear it: You got this, Lexie.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
