Definition

1. Noun:

   • Information received from other people that one cannot adequately substantiate; rumor. "Hearsay" refers to statements or reports that are not based on the direct knowledge or observation of the speaker but are instead repeated from what they have heard others say.
   • Gossip or talk of uncertain accuracy. It often implies a mixture of truth and untruth passed around informally.

2. Adjective:

   • Based on or consisting of hearsay. Used to describe information, evidence, or reports that are not directly observed or verified but are relayed by others.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The story about the manager resigning was just hearsay until the official announcement.
  • You shouldn't make important decisions based on hearsay.
• Adjective:
  • The newspaper article was criticized for relying on hearsay accounts.
  • Hearsay evidence is often inadmissible in a court of law.

Advanced Usage

• "To be mere/pure hearsay": To be completely unsubstantiated rumor.
  • The allegations, lacking any documentation, were dismissed as mere hearsay.
• "Hearsay rule": A fundamental rule in law that prohibits the use of out-of-court statements as evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted, due to their unreliability.
  • The defense attorney objected, citing the hearsay rule.

Variants and Related Words

• Hearsay evidence (noun phrase): Evidence based on what a witness has heard from another person rather than what they have personally witnessed.
  • The judge excluded the hearsay evidence from the trial.

Synonyms

• Rumor: A currently circulating story or report of uncertain or doubtful truth.
• Gossip: Casual or unconstrained conversation or reports about other people, typically involving details that are not confirmed as true.
• Tittle-tattle: Idle gossip or chatter.

Antonyms

• Fact: A thing that is known or proved to be true.
• Evidence: The available body of facts or information indicating whether a belief or proposition is true or valid.
• Firsthand account: A report from someone who directly experienced or witnessed an event.

Related Phrases

• By/from hearsay: Through rumor or indirect reports.
  • I know of the incident only by hearsay.
• Secondhand information: Information obtained indirectly from another source, not from personal experience. (This is a close conceptual synonym but not an idiom with "hearsay").

Adjective

1. heard through another rather than directly
   • hearsay information

Noun

1. gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth