hearken

or hark·en

[ hahr-kuh n ]

/ ˈhɑr kən /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR hearken ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

Literary. to give heed or attention to what is said; listen.

verb (used with object)

Archaic. to listen to; hear.

Words nearby hearken

hearing dog, hearing impairment, hearing loss, hearing-ear dog, hearing-impaired, hearken, hearn, hearsay, hearsay evidence, hearsay rule, hearse

Origin of hearken

1150–1200; Middle English hercnen, Old English he(o)rcnian, suffixed form of assumed *heorcian; see hark, -en¹

OTHER WORDS FROM hearken

heark·en·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hearken

Hearken to the bleating of newborn two-headed freak candidacy lambs.
PJ’s Political Forecast: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatheads|P. J. O’Rourke|March 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And hearken to this latest warning by Kevin Sabet: cigarettes are legal, yet organized crime syndicates still smuggle them.
Let's Have a Smarter Approach to Marijuana|David Frum|January 28, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I hope you'll find it entertaining, but even more that you'll hearken to its message.
"Patriots" Goes Live Today|David Frum|April 30, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The king had no heart to hearken longer, but betook him straightway to his bed; cause enow had he for woe, or so it seemed him!
Sir Gawain and the Lady of Lys|Anonymous

But the Senator from Maine says he is unwilling to hearken to suggestions from foreign nations.
Charles Sumner; his complete works, volume 7 (of 20)|Charles Sumner
But the multitude advised him to hearken to none of his proposals, but to despise him, and be in readiness to fight him.
The Antiquities of the Jews|Flavius Josephus
I call upon others to join me, in order to make a company apart, but no one will hearken to me.
Life and Correspondence of David Hume, Volume I (of 2)|John Hill Burton
But the empresse and hir brother would not hearken to any agréement, except that the realme Geruasius Dorober.
Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland (2 of 6): England (4 of 12)|Raphael Holinshed

British Dictionary definitions for hearken

hearken

sometimes US harken

/ (ˈhɑːkən) /

verb

archaic to listen to (something)

Derived forms of hearken

hearkener, noun

Word Origin for hearken

Old English heorcnian; see hark

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012