Added 7 October 2026
hear
/ˈhɪə/ verb
In Latin: audio Wiktionary
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about hear at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
To perceive sounds through the ear. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
I was deaf, but now I can hear.
-
To perceive (a sound, or something producing a sound) with the ear, to recognize (something) in an auditory way.
I could hear them quarreling upstairs, but didn’t really listen to their argument.
- To exercise this faculty intentionally; to listen to.
interjection
- you hear me
Origin
From Middle English har, heoren, her, here, heren, from Old English hēran, hīeran, hīran, hȳran (“to hear”), from Proto-West Germanic *hauʀijan, from Proto-Germanic *hauzijaną (“to hear”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ḱh₂owsyéti (“to be sharp-eared”), from *h₂eḱ- (“sharp”) + *h₂ows- (“ear”) + *-yéti (denominative suffix).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)