ear

/iə/

Học thuật

Thân thiện

The boy points to his ear.

Definition

Noun:
- The organ of hearing and balance: The part of the body, on either side of the head, that is used for hearing sounds and maintaining physical equilibrium.
- The sense or ability to hear: The faculty of perceiving sound.
- The ability to recognize, appreciate, or reproduce sounds, especially in music: A sensitivity to tone, pitch, or sound quality.
- Attention or heed: Willingness to listen.
- The fruiting spike of a cereal plant: The seed-bearing head of a plant like corn, wheat, or barley.

Examples of Usage

Noun (Body Part):
- She whispered the secret directly into his ear.
- The infection was in his inner ear, affecting his balance.
Noun (Hearing Ability):
- He has a very good ear and can hear the faintest sounds.
- She has a great ear for languages and picks up accents quickly.
Noun (Musical Sensitivity):
- To tune a guitar properly, you need a good ear.
- The pianist has a perfect ear for pitch.
Noun (Attention):
- I tried to get the manager's ear to discuss my idea.
- He promised to lend a sympathetic ear to her problems.
Noun (Botany):
- The corn ears were ripe and ready for harvest.
- An ear of wheat contains many individual grains.

Advanced Usage

"To have someone's ear": To have the attention or favor of someone, especially someone in authority.
- As a trusted advisor, she has the president's ear on economic matters.
"To play by ear": To play music without written notation, relying on memory or improvisation; figuratively, to handle a situation without a fixed plan, reacting as it develops.
- I don't have the sheet music, so I'll have to play this song by ear.
- We don't have a schedule for the meeting; let's just play it by ear.

Variants and Related Words

Earful (noun): A lengthy, forceful, or critical reprimand or amount of gossip.
- He got an earful from his boss for being late.
Earring (noun): A piece of jewelry worn on the lobe or edge of the ear.
Eardrum (noun): The thin membrane in the ear that vibrates in response to sound waves.

Synonyms

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

To prick up one's ears: To suddenly begin to listen attentively.
- She pricked up her ears when she heard her name mentioned.
To bend someone's ear: To talk to someone for a long time, especially about a problem or complaint.
- He bent my ear for an hour about his car troubles.

Related Idioms

To be all ears: To be listening eagerly and attentively.
- "Tell me the story," she said. "I'm all ears."
To go in one ear and out the other: To be heard but immediately forgotten or ignored.
- My advice about studying just went in one ear and out the other.
Walls have ears: A warning that one may be overheard, even in private.
- Be careful what you say here; walls have ears.
To have an ear for (something): To have a natural talent for recognizing, appreciating, or reproducing a particular type of sound.
- He has a good ear for dialects.

The boy points to his ear.

Noun

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