Listening is an important skill we use every day. When we listen carefully, we understand others better. Did you know there are special phrases called idioms that describe good listening? These idioms are fun ways of saying someone pays attention. Knowing these idioms helps us become better listeners and speakers.
In this article, we will explore idioms about listening. Each idiom teaches us something new about how to listen well. We will also have a multiple-choice quiz to test your understanding. Let’s discover together what it means to truly listen to others.
Idioms about Listening
1. All ears
Meaning: Ready to listen carefully
Sample Sentences: I was all ears when Dad started talking about our vacation. / She was all ears during story time.
Other Way to Say: Listening closely / Paying attention
2. Fall on deaf ears
Meaning: Not listened to
Sample Sentences: His warning fell on deaf ears when nobody listened. / Mom’s advice fell on deaf ears again.
Other Way to Say: Ignored / Not heard
3. In one ear and out the other
Meaning: Not remembered after being heard
Sample Sentences: My reminder went in one ear and out the other. / He heard me but forgot it went in one ear and out the other.
Other Way to Say: Didn’t sink in / Forgotten quickly
4. Keep your ears open
Meaning: Listen carefully
Sample Sentences: Keep your ears open for the ice cream truck. / I kept my ears open during the announcements.
Other Way to Say: Listen closely / Be alert
5. Music to my ears
Meaning: Something nice to hear
Sample Sentences: “No homework today” was music to my ears! / The praise from my teacher was music to my ears.
Other Way to Say: Great to hear / Sounded good
6. Lend an ear
Meaning: Listen to someone kindly
Sample Sentences: Can you lend an ear to my story? / He lent an ear when I needed to talk.
Other Way to Say: Listen kindly / Be a good listener
7. Turn a deaf ear
Meaning: Choose not to listen
Sample Sentences: She turned a deaf ear to the warning. / I turned a deaf ear to the teasing.
Other Way to Say: Ignored / Refused to listen
8. Eavesdrop
Meaning: Listen secretly
Sample Sentences: He eavesdropped on our chat behind the door. / No eavesdropping on Mom’s call!
Other Way to Say: Spy / Listen in secretly
9. Prick up your ears
Meaning: Start listening carefully
Sample Sentences: I pricked up my ears when I heard “cake.” / The class pricked up their ears when the bell rang.
Other Way to Say: Listen quickly / Pay sudden attention
10. Give someone a hearing
Meaning: Let someone talk
Sample Sentences: Please give him a hearing before you decide. / She gave her friend a hearing even if she was upset.
Other Way to Say: Let speak / Hear someone out
11. Listen up
Meaning: Pay attention now
Sample Sentences: Listen up, class! / The coach said, “Listen up! Practice is starting.”
Other Way to Say: Pay attention / Focus
12. Heard it through the grapevine
Meaning: Heard it from someone else
Sample Sentences: I heard it through the grapevine that school’s closing early. / She heard it through the grapevine that there’s a surprise party.
Other Way to Say: Got a tip / Found out from others
13. Keep an ear to the ground
Meaning: Stay alert for news
Sample Sentences: Keep an ear to the ground in case plans change. /He keeps an ear to the ground for school news.
Other Way to Say: Stay alert / Be aware
14. Talk your ear off
Meaning: Talk a lot
Sample Sentences: She talked my ear off about her new puppy. /He’ll talk your ear off if you mention dinosaurs.
Other Way to Say: Talk too much / Chatter a lot
15. Play it by ear
Meaning: Decide as you go
Sample Sentences: We’ll play it by ear if it rains on picnic day. /Let’s play it by ear and see how we feel later.
Other Way to Say: Decide later / Go with the flow
16. Have an ear for
Meaning: Be good at hearing certain things
Sample Sentences: She has an ear for music. /He has an ear for languages.
Other Way to Say: Good listener / Picks up sounds well
17. Go in one ear and stay there
Meaning: Heard and remembered
Sample Sentences: Her tip went in one ear and stayed there I remembered it! /That rule went in one ear and stayed there for good.
Other Way to Say: Remembered / Stuck in mind
18. Ring in your ears
Meaning: A sound stuck in your mind
Sample Sentences: After the concert, the music still rang in my ears. / The fire drill kept ringing in my ears.
Other Way to Say: Still echoing / Remembered sound
19. Listen with half an ear
Meaning: Not really paying attention
Sample Sentences: He listened with half an ear while playing video games. /I was tired and listening with half an ear.
Other Way to Say: Not fully listening / Half-focused
20. Tune someone out
Meaning: Stop listening on purpose
Sample Sentences: I tuned out the noise while reading. / She tuned him out when he started bragging.
Other Way to Say: Block out / Ignore sound
21. Sound like a broken record
Meaning: Keep saying the same thing
Sample Sentences: You sound like a broken record talking about that game. / Mom sounded like a broken record reminding me to clean up.
Other Way to Say: Repeating a lot / Saying it again and again
22. Ears are burning
Meaning: Someone is talking about you
Sample Sentences: My ears are burning are you talking about me? /She smiled and said, “My ears are burning!”
Other Way to Say: Someone’s gossiping / I’m being talked about
23. Close your ears
Meaning: Try not to listen
Sample Sentences: I closed my ears during the scary part. /He closed his ears to the loud music.
Other Way to Say: Block out / Shut it out
24. Give an earful
Meaning: Talk to someone angrily
Sample Sentences: I got an earful for not doing chores. / She gave him an earful for being rude.
Other Way to Say: Scold / Speak sharply
25. Can’t hear yourself think
Meaning: It’s too noisy
Sample Sentences: It’s so loud in here I can’t hear myself think! / The music was too loud I couldn’t hear myself think.
Other Way to Say: Too noisy / Loud space
26. Listening in
Meaning: Secretly hearing others
Sample Sentences: I caught him listening in on our talk. / She was listening in from the hallway.
Other Way to Say: Sneaking a listen / Eavesdropping
27. It fell silent
Meaning: Everyone stopped talking
Sample Sentences: The room fell silent when the teacher walked in. / After the joke, it fell silent.
Other Way to Say: Quiet all of a sudden / No one talked
28. Hear it loud and clear
Meaning: Understood completely
Sample Sentences: I hear you loud and clear, Coach! / We heard the rule loud and clear.
Other Way to Say: Got the message / Totally clear
29. Give someone a listen
Meaning: Hear someone out
Sample Sentences: Let’s give him a listen before we judge. / They gave me a listen, and it helped.
Other Way to Say: Hear someone out / Take time to listen
30. Keep your ears peeled
Meaning: Be alert and ready to listen
Sample Sentences: Keep your ears peeled for the lunch bell. / I kept my ears peeled for my name at pickup.
Other Way to Say: Stay alert / Be ready
31. Whisper in someone’s ear
Meaning: Tell someone quietly or secretly
Sample Sentences: She whispered in my ear during the movie. / He whispered in my ear to share the answer.
Other Way to Say: Tell softly / Speak quietly
32. Give someone the cold ear
Meaning: Refuse to listen
Sample Sentences: He gave her the cold ear after the fight. / I got the cold ear when I tried to say sorry.
Other Way to Say: Ignore / Refuse to hear
33. Ear candy
Meaning: Something nice to hear
Sample Sentences: That song is pure ear candy. / Her laugh is like ear candy.
Other Way to Say: Sounds nice / Fun to hear
34. Have ears like a bat
Meaning: Hear very well
Sample Sentences: He has ears like a bat he heard me whisper! / She has ears like a bat and hears everything.
Other Way to Say: Super listener / Hears everything
35. Be all hearing
Meaning: Listen with full focus
Sample Sentences: I’m all hearing go ahead! / She was all hearing during the story.
Other Way to Say: Fully listening / Focused
36. Fall silent
Meaning: Suddenly stop talking
Sample Sentences: We fell silent when the lights went out. / The class fell silent before the test.
Other Way to Say: Stop talking / Go quiet
37. Shout in someone’s ear
Meaning: Talk too loudly
Sample Sentences: You don’t have to shout in my ear! / He shouted in my ear and scared me.
Other Way to Say: Too loud / Yell close by
38. Be tone-deaf
Meaning: Not able to notice sound or feelings
Sample Sentences: He’s tone-deaf and didn’t see she was upset. / Don’t be tone-deaf listen better next time.
Other Way to Say: Not noticing / Missing signs
39. Hear a pin drop
Meaning: So quiet you could hear anything
Sample Sentences: It was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. / The room was silent you could hear a pin drop.
Other Way to Say: Completely silent / Very quiet
40. Keep it to your ears
Meaning: Don’t repeat what you heard
Sample Sentences: I’ll tell you, but keep it to your ears. / It’s a secret just for your ears.
Other Way to Say: Keep it quiet / Don’t tell others
41. Bent my ear
Meaning: Talked to me for a long time
Sample Sentences: She bent my ear about her cat for an hour. / He bent my ear with his baseball stories.
Other Way to Say: Talked a lot / Kept going
42. Plug your ears
Meaning: Cover your ears to block sound
Sample Sentences: I plugged my ears during the thunder. / She plugged her ears during the scary part.
Other Way to Say: Cover ears / Block the noise
43. Not a word to your ears
Meaning: Someone didn’t hear anything
Sample Sentences: Not a word reached his ears he was asleep. / The news never got to her ears.
Other Way to Say: Didn’t hear it / Missed it
44. Listen behind closed doors
Meaning: Listen to private things
Sample Sentences: He listened behind closed doors to hear the surprise. / Don’t listen behind closed doors it’s rude.
Other Way to Say: Sneaky listening / Eavesdropping
45. Soft on the ears
Meaning: Easy and pleasant to hear
Sample Sentences: Her voice is soft on the ears. / That song is soft on the ears.
Other Way to Say: Pleasant / Easy to hear
46. Not let it reach your ears
Meaning: Block out or avoid hearing something
Sample Sentences: I didn’t let that rumor reach my ears. / Don’t let mean words reach your ears.
Other Way to Say: Ignore it / Block it out
47. Ears wide open
Meaning: Listening carefully
Sample Sentences: I was sitting with my ears wide open during the lesson. / He had his ears wide open at the magic show.
Other Way to Say: Very focused / Listening hard
48. Echo in your ears
Meaning: Still hearing something in your mind
Sample Sentences: Her song echoed in my ears all day. / The shout echoed in my ears long after the game.
Other Way to Say: Stuck in my head / Still hearing it
49. Ears were glued
Meaning: Couldn’t stop listening
Sample Sentences: My ears were glued to the story. / We were so into it our ears were glued!
Other Way to Say: Fully listening / Hooked
50. Listening ears on
Meaning: Be ready to listen
Sample Sentences: Put your listening ears on, class! / I had my listening ears on the whole time.
Other Way to Say: Ready to hear / Be alert
51. Earshot
Meaning: Close enough to hear
Sample Sentences: Stay within earshot so I can call you. / She was just out of earshot and missed the joke.
Other Way to Say: Nearby to hear / Close enough
52. Buzzing in my ears
Meaning: A sound you keep hearing
Sample Sentences: That noise is still buzzing in my ears. / I heard buzzing in my ears after the concert.
Other Way to Say: Still ringing / Won’t go away
53. Have someone’s ear
Meaning: Someone listens to you carefully
Sample Sentences: She has the teacher’s ear when she needs help. / I had Dad’s ear while I told my story.
Other Way to Say: Someone’s attention / They’ll listen to you
54. Listen in silence
Meaning: Listen without talking
Sample Sentences: We listened in silence to the rain. / The class listened in silence during the speech.
Other Way to Say: Quiet listening / Silent attention
55. Ears on alert
Meaning: Listening for something important
Sample Sentences: My ears were on alert for the bell. / She had her ears on alert when her name was called.
Other Way to Say: Listening closely / Waiting to hear
Multiple Choice Quiz: Idioms About Listening
1. What does it mean if someone says, “I’m all ears”?
A. Their ears are big
B. They are ready to listen
C. They are wearing earrings
2. If someone says your warning “fell on deaf ears,” what happened?
A. You whispered too quietly
B. They heard you and followed directions
C. They didn’t listen to you
3. What does “in one ear and out the other” mean?
A. You remembered it forever
B. You didn’t really listen
C. Your ears are cold
4. If something is “music to your ears,” what does it mean?
A. It’s loud and annoying
B. It’s strange
C. It’s very nice to hear
5. When someone says, “She talks your ear off,” what does it mean?
A. She talks a lot
B. She whispers too softly
C. She sings loudly
6. What does it mean if you “keep your ears open”?
A. Clean your ears
B. Listen carefully
C. Wear earrings
7. If a person “eavesdrops,” what are they doing?
A. Shouting across the room
B. Sleeping in class
C. Secretly listening to others
8. What does it mean to “tune someone out”?
A. Change the radio
B. Stop listening on purpose
C. Turn off the TV
9. When someone has “ears like a bat,” what does it mean?
A. Their ears are pointy
B. They hear very well
C. They sleep upside down
10. If your “ears are burning,” what does that suggest?
A. Someone is talking about you
B. You have a sunburn
C. Your headphones are too loud
11. If the room is so quiet “you can hear a pin drop,” what does it mean?
A. It’s loud and busy
B. It’s very quiet
C. You dropped a pin
12. What does “play it by ear” mean?
A. Play music
B. Use your ears to decide
C. Decide what to do as you go
Answer Key
- B) They are ready to listen
- C) They didn’t listen to you
- B) You didn’t really listen
- C) It’s very nice to hear
- A) She talks a lot
- B) Listen carefully
- C) Secretly listening to others
- B) Stop listening on purpose
- B) They hear very well
- A) Someone is talking about you
- B) It’s very quiet
- C) Decide what to do as you go
Scoring Guide
- 12 Correct Answers: Love Listening Idioms Master!
You understand listening idioms really well! - 8–11 Correct Answers: Well on your way to understanding listening idioms.
You’re getting it just a little more practice! - 4–7 Correct Answers: Room for improvement, but you’re getting there!
Keep learning, you’re doing fine. - 0–3 Correct Answers: Let’s explore listening idioms together.
Don’t worry! These can be tricky at first.
Conclusion
Learning idioms about listening can help you become a better friend, student, and family member. These phrases show us why listening carefully is important. By knowing idioms like “all ears” or “lend an ear,” you can understand others better. Try using these idioms at school or home to make conversations fun and clear. Keep practicing, and soon these idioms will feel natural to you.
