hearken

American  

[hahr-kuhn] / ˈhɑr kən /

Or harken

verb (used without object)

• hearkens,
  present (3rd person singular)
• hearkened,
  past participle,  past
• hearkening
  present participle

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

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verb (used with object)

• hearkens,
  present (3rd person singular)
• hearkened,
  past participle,  past
• hearkening
  present participle

1. Archaic. to listen to; hear.

hearken British  

/ ˈhɑːkən /

verb

1. archaic to listen to (something)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hearkener
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• hearkening
  present
• hearkened
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• hearken
  simple
• hearkens
  simple
• have hearkened
  perfect
• has hearkened
  perfect
• am hearkening
  progressive
• are hearkening
  progressive
• is hearkening
  progressive
• have been hearkening
  perfect progressive
• has been hearkening
  perfect progressive

Past

• hearkened
  simple
• had hearkened
  perfect
• was hearkening
  progressive
• were hearkening
  progressive
• had been hearkening
  perfect progressive

Future

• will hearken
  simple
• will have hearkened
  perfect
• will be hearkening
  progressive
• will have been hearkening
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of hearken

1150–1200; Middle English hercnen, Old English he ( o ) rcnian, suffixed form of assumed *heorcian; see hark, -en ¹

Explanation

Hearken is an old fashioned form of the word hark, meaning "to listen" (see hark). In the Bible, prophets and saints are always telling people to hearken to their words. While hark is still used today, hearken is pretty much obsolete — unless perhaps you happen to be an old school preacher. Hearken, like hark, can also mean to look back to something in the past, though there is often a critical sense to the word. To hearken back to an old memory or event is usually to do it in a way that may be annoying to other people or perhaps even damaging or self-defeating to the one doing the hearkening. Frequently spelled harken in the US.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hearken hearkens hearkened hearkening

It sounded strange, like a song out of time — Melanie said she intended it to hearken to the 1930s — sung with what could now be called a warbling “indie girl voice.”

From New York Times ● Jan. 24, 2024

If approved, the proposal could usher in a wave of water regulations that hearken back to previous droughts while underscoring the seriousness of the current one.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 8, 2021

Elsewhere, the more melancholic numbers hearken back to rainy-day power pop of the ’90s, occasionally erupting in star-reaching guitar leads that would make My Morning Jacket jealous.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 6, 2021

I'd thought that the sudden Scorsese renaissance was a case of the former: his movies are well-shot, well-acted, well-directed, and hearken back to beloved filmmaking tropes of the New Hollywood era.

From Salon ● Mar. 13, 2021

‘Now Théoden son of Thengel, will you hearken to me?’ said Gandalf.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

Usually with female characters, everything always hearkens back to the family.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

And it’s on Max, but it sort of hearkens back to, like, the old-school broadcast kind of drama.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2025

Riley’s work hearkens to Krautrock and what would be coming in post-rock.

From New York Times ● Mar. 6, 2024

“True Detective: Night Country” hearkens back to the critically acclaimed first season pairing Matthew McConaughey’s Rust Cohle with Woody Harrelson’s Marty Hart.

From Salon ● Jan. 21, 2024

It hearkens back to the long-ago rope, swinging in the slight breeze.

From "X: A Novel" by Ilyasah Shabazz

As directed by James Griffiths, Mr. Basden and Mr. Key’s screenplay hearkened back to “Local Hero” with its warm glow of appreciation for U.K. oddballs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 24, 2025

Carney revealed it on Friday during his first speech as prime minister when he hearkened back - with a shiny polish - to the origins of this former colony.

From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2025

And he sang — humming and sometimes modifying his voice, weaving melodies that hearkened back to those old lullabies.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2023

The judge also hearkened back to the days that Silicon Valley consisted mostly of orchards farmed by immigrants.

From Washington Times ● May 27, 2023

One subject we hearkened back to again and again was the question of whether there were tigers in Africa.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Parsons said liminal spaces all share a quality of feeling familiar: hearkening fragments of distant memories or experiences during childhood.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Subconsciously hearkening back to his childhood sleep experiences, he adds, “I wanted this story to feel like a nightmare that just keeps getting worse and worse and worse and worse.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026

What I find fascinating today, too, is the Gen Z is also hearkening back to the past with a more fluid life where these labels and binaries didn't exist.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2024

Unfortunately, when we’re taught that there are only eight planets and these planets reign in their orbits, we’re hearkening back to the old geocentric concept.

From National Geographic ● Feb. 16, 2024

"I am already to blame for hearkening to words against my brother Benjamin."

From The Garden of Eden by Max Brand