within hearing distance

within hearing distance

Close enough to clearly hear what someone says or does. They didn't realize I was within hearing distance when they were discussing my performance in school. Let's step outside—I don't want to fight while they're within hearing distance.See also: distance, hearing, within

in/within (somebody’s) ˈhearing

near enough to somebody so that they can hear what is said: She shouldn’t have said such things in your hearing.See also: hearing, within