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.

2. listenverb

   To wait for a sound, such as a signal.

   You should listen for the starting gun.

3. listenverb

   To accept or obey oral instruction.

   Good children listen to their parents.

4. listenverb

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

5. 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. Patrick Henry:

   It is natural for a man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut out eyes against a painful truth and listen to the song of that siren, till she transforms into beasts.

2. Rick Santorum:

   I wrote the partial-birth abortion statute and if you listen to the tapes, and you look at what the procedures are, they are doing just that.

3. Brandon Lewis:

   As a set of principles, one of the things we need to be able to do ... is the ability to do those international trade deals, to be able to trade globally around the world, and have an independent trade policy, that means we can't stay in the current EU customs union, there are a whole range of meetings today between senior ministers and colleagues around the House of Commons. We will listen to what people have to say.

4. Dave Grohl:

   For years I couldn't even listen to any music, let alone a Nirvana song. When Kurt died, every time the radio came on, it broke my heart.

5. Chris Christie:

   There comes a moment when a leader has to listen.

Popularity rank by frequency of use