- to concentrate on hearing something
- to take heed; pay attention: I told you many times but you wouldn't listen
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
lis•ten /ˈlɪsən/USA pronunciation
v.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- to give attention with the ear;
pay attention for the purpose of hearing: [~ + to + object]He listened to every word.[no object]I wasn't listening. - to obey;
take advice from:[~ + to + object]Children don't always listen to their parents. - to wait attentively in order to hear a sound or signal:[~ + for + object]listening for the phone to ring.
- listen in:
- [no object] to listen to a broadcast, as on the radio.
- to listen to a conversation without joining it: [no object]He sat in the back, listening in.[~ + on + object]wanted to listen in on the talks.
- See hear.
lis•ten
(lis′ən),USA pronunciation v.i.
v.t.
lis′ten•er, n.
- to give attention with the ear;
attend closely for the purpose of hearing;
give ear. - to pay attention;
heed;
obey (often fol. by to):Children don't always listen to their parents. - to wait attentively for a sound (usually fol. by for):to listen for sounds of their return.
- Informal Termsto convey a particular impression to the hearer;
sound:The new recording doesn't listen as well as the old one.
v.t.
- [Archaic.]to give ear to;
hear. - listen in:
- to listen to a radio or television broadcast:Listen in tomorrow for the names of the lottery winners.
- to overhear a conversation or communication, esp. by telephone;
eavesdrop:Someone was listening in to his private calls.
- bef. 950; Middle English lis(t)nen, Old English hlysnan; cognate with Middle High German lüsenen, Swedish lyssna; akin to list5
- 1. See hear.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
listen /ˈlɪsən/ vb (intransitive)
'listen' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
amenable
- attend
- auscultation
- eat up
- eavesdrop
- hang on
- hark
- hear
- hear out
- hearken
- incline
- lend
- list
- listen in
- now
- prick
- reason
- scout
- soiree
- the
- this
- throat
- unreasonable
- well
- while
- brush-off
- crowd
- deaf
- diplacusis
- ear
- God
- imperative
- lip
- listenable
- listenership
- load
- mail
- majlis
- mind
- monitor
- N, n
- nauseating
- rumor
- wiretap
- sama‘
- Shema
- sister