Definitions for Listen
ˈlɪs ənLis·ten

Princeton's WordNet(1.25 / 4 votes)Rate this definition:

1. listenverb

   hear with intention

   "Listen to the sound of this cello"

2. listen, hear, take heedverb

   listen and pay attention

   "Listen to your father"; "We must hear the expert before we make a decision"

3. heed, mind, listenverb

   pay close attention to; give heed to

   "Heed the advice of the old men"

Wiktionary(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. listenverb

   To pay attention to a sound, to note.

   Etymology: From listnen, from hlysnan, from *hlusinon (compare lüstern, luisteren and lauschen), from ḱlew-. Akin to rochluiniur 'I hear', clueo, κλαίω, κλέος, լամ, degjoj, from ant. glôj, glûej, слути, слѹшати, klausau 'to hear', Middle Persian , श्रु. More at loud.

2. listenverb

   To wait for a sound, such as a signal.

   You should listen for the starting gun.

   Etymology: From listnen, from hlysnan, from *hlusinon (compare lüstern, luisteren and lauschen), from ḱlew-. Akin to rochluiniur 'I hear', clueo, κλαίω, κλέος, լամ, degjoj, from ant. glôj, glûej, слути, слѹшати, klausau 'to hear', Middle Persian , श्रु. More at loud.

3. listenverb

   To accept or obey oral instruction.

   Good children listen to their parents.

   Etymology: From listnen, from hlysnan, from *hlusinon (compare lüstern, luisteren and lauschen), from ḱlew-. Akin to rochluiniur 'I hear', clueo, κλαίω, κλέος, լամ, degjoj, from ant. glôj, glûej, слути, слѹшати, klausau 'to hear', Middle Persian , श्रु. More at loud.

4. listenverb

   To hear (something or someone), to pay attention to.

   Etymology: From listnen, from hlysnan, from *hlusinon (compare lüstern, luisteren and lauschen), from ḱlew-. Akin to rochluiniur 'I hear', clueo, κλαίω, κλέος, լամ, degjoj, from ant. glôj, glûej, слути, слѹшати, klausau 'to hear', Middle Persian , श्रु. More at loud.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Listenverb

   to give close attention with the purpose of hearing; to give ear; to hearken; to attend

2. Listenverb

   to give heed; to yield to advice; to follow admonition; to obey

3. Listenverb

   to attend to

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Listen

   Listen is the third album by R&B singer TQ. It was released on August 31, 2004 in the United States and October 17, 2005 in the United Kingdom.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. listen

   To focus and hear what a person is saying or communicating.

   They did listen to each other respectfully.

   Submitted by MaryC on January 16, 2020  

2. listen

   To give attention, hear and remember what a person is saying.

   They did listen to each other respectfully.

   Submitted by MaryC on January 16, 2020  

Matched Categories

1. • Obey
   • Perceive

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Listen' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2214

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Listen' in Written Corpus Frequency: #670

3. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Listen' in Verbs Frequency: #191

Anagrams for Listen »

1. enlist, inlets, leints, silent, tinsel

2. Enlist

3. Inlets

4. Leints

5. Silent

6. Tinsel

How to pronounce Listen?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say Listen in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Listen in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Listen in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of Listen in a Sentence

1. Art Bobruff:

   What I'm looking for is a Republican who can be in the middle. The problem is, in order to win the primary, you've got to be extreme, listen.

2. Chris Morris:

   Listen close and you can hear, “Please, bless us and forgive us, and make us good here and strong here. Let us get along here. Let those we love and left behind be blessed. Let us find the proper path and keep to it. Help us act harmoniously, and find work pleasing in the sight of god and man.”

3. Greta Thunberg:

   He is of course obviously not doing enough but... this is such a huge problem, my message to all the politicians is the same, to just listen to the science, act on the science.

4. Lati Grobman:

   We can bring ideas and with [ Stallone ], it's not a dictatorship. Sylvester Stallone loves to hear ideas. And we are open to listen, rambo : Last Blood.

5. Richard Ojeda:

   They're absolute brilliant military minds. Listen to them, it bothers me that that's not happening.

Popularity rank by frequency of use