hear
verb /hɪə(r)/
/hɪr/
Verb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they hear | /hɪə(r)/ /hɪr/ |
| he / she / it hears | /hɪəz/ /hɪrz/ |
| past simple heard | /hɜːd/ /hɜːrd/ |
| past participle heard | /hɜːd/ /hɜːrd/ |
| -ing form hearing | /ˈhɪərɪŋ/ /ˈhɪrɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive, transitive] (not used in the progressive tenses) to be aware of sounds with your ears
- I can't hear very well.
- hear something/somebody He heard a noise and went to investigate.
- She could hear voices in the kitchen.
- I could hear the sound of traffic in the background.
- She heard footsteps behind her.
- I couldn’t hear anything.
- to hear a scream/a cry/a shot/an explosion
- hear somebody/something doing something He could hear a dog barking.
- hear somebody/something do something Did you hear him go out?
- I heard a car drive off.
- hear what… Didn't you hear what I said?
- somebody/something is heard to do something She has been heard to make threats to her former lover.
Homophones hear | herehear here/hɪə(r)//hɪr/- hear verb
- I can't hear you—the signal is very bad.
- here adverb
- We don't need to move—we can see it all from here!
Extra Examples- ‘Sheep?’ It sounded so unlikely that Sally did not think she could have heard correctly.
- Can you hear me clearly at the back?
- Distantly he heard the report of another gun.
- I could just hear the music in the distance.
- You'd better not let Dad hear you say that.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- clearly
- well
- barely
- …
- can
- pretend not to
- strain to
- …
- [transitive] (not used in the progressive tenses) to listen or pay attention to somebody/something
- hear something Did you hear that play on the radio last night?
- He knows that the crowd wants to hear those songs.
- Langgard's music is rarely heard outside Denmark.
- to hear both sides of the argument
- hear somebody/something/yourself do something Be quiet—I can't hear myself think! (= it is so noisy that I can't think clearly)
- Have you ever heard him lecture?
- hear what… We'd better hear what they have to say.
Extra Examples- Let's hear you sing, then.
- a chance to hear the first movement again
- Election events offer voters a chance to hear the candidates speak.
- [intransitive, transitive] (not usually used in the progressive tenses) to be told about something
- Haven't you heard? She resigned.
- ‘I'm getting married.’ ‘So I've heard.’
- Things are going well from what I hear.
- hear about somebody/something I was sorry to hear about your accident.
- Come on! I want to hear all about it.
- Wait till he hears about this.
- I've heard about people like you.
- hear something We had heard nothing for weeks.
- to hear a story/rumour/report
- When I heard the news, I was devastated.
- I was delighted to hear your good news.
- hear (that)… I was surprised to hear (that) he was married.
- I hear you've been away this weekend.
- hear it said (that)… I’ve heard it said (that) they met in Italy.
- hear what, how, etc… Did you hear what happened?
- We are waiting to hear what the lawyers have to say.
Extra Examples- We are hearing talk of civil war.
- I told Michael what he wanted to hear.
- I was delighted to hear about your promotion.
- I've heard about this sort of thing before.
- We hear very little about these issues nowadays.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + hear- be delighted to
- be glad to
- be gratified to
- …
- about
- of
- hear little, a lot, nothing, etc. about something
- [transitive] hear something to listen to and judge a case in court
- The appeal was heard in private.
- Today the jury began to hear the evidence.
Word OriginOld English hīeran, hēran, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch hooren and German hören.
Idioms
be seeing/hearing things
- (informal, humorous) to imagine that you can see or hear something that is in fact not there
have you heard the one about…?
- used to ask somebody if they have heard a particular joke before
hear! hear!
- used to show that you agree with or approve of what somebody has just said, especially during a speechTopics Opinion and argumentc2
hear/see the last of somebody/something
- to hear/see somebody/something for the last time
- That was the last I ever saw of her.
- Unfortunately, I don't think we've heard the last of this affair.
hear tell (of something)
- (old-fashioned or formal) to hear people talking about something
- I've often heard tell of such things.
I hear what you're saying
- used to tell somebody that you have listened to their opinion, especially when you are going to express a different opinion
- I hear what you're saying, but you're wrong.
I’ve heard it all before
- (informal) used to say that you do not really believe somebody’s promises or excuses because they are the same ones you have heard before
the last I heard
- used to give the most recent news you have about somebody/something
- The last I heard he was still working at the garage.
let’s hear it for…
- (informal) used to say that somebody/something deserves praise
- Let's hear it for the teachers, for a change.
make your voice heard
- to express your feelings, opinions, etc. in a way that makes people notice and consider them
- The programme gives ordinary viewers a chance to make their voices heard.
- a society in which individuals are able to make their voices heard
not/never hear the end of it
- to keep being reminded of something because somebody is always talking to you about it
- If we don't get her a dog we'll never hear the end of it.
you could hear a pin drop
- it was extremely quiet
- The audience was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.
(do) you hear (me)?
- (informal) used to tell somebody in an angry way to pay attention and obey you
- You can't go—do you hear me?