ear
noun /ɪə(r)/
/ɪr/
Idioms 
enlarge image[countable] either of the organs on the sides of the head that you hear with- the left/right ear
- He put his hands over his ears.
- She's had her ears pierced.
- The elephant flapped its ears.
- in somebody's ear She whispered something in his ear.
- He was now screaming in my ear.
- He was always there with a sympathetic ear (= was always willing to listen to people).
- an ear infection
Extra ExamplesTopics Bodya1- A blast of punk rock music assaulted her ears.
- A horse may show annoyance by putting its ears back.
- A small noise caught his ear.
- At first I stopped my ears to what I did not want to hear.
- Blood from his torn ear was soaking his collar.
- Chinese music uses a scale that is unfamiliar to Western ears.
- Christopher felt his ears reddening.
- Dogs can hear things that human ears can't hear.
- Each animal receives an individual ear tag.
- He had three ear piercings.
- He has really big ears that stick out.
- He pressed his ear to the door, but heard nothing.
- He waited in the darkness, his ears alert for the slightest sound.
- If you suck a sweet as the plane takes off it stops your ears popping.
- a rabbit with long floppy ears
- He could hear much better after having his ears cleaned out.
- She nibbled on his ear.
- His sharp ears had picked up the uncertainty in her voice.
- Drop a quiet word in her ear about it before it's too late.
- I have a few words for your ears alone.
- I strained my ears to catch the conversation in the other room.
- If news of the break-in reaches the boss's ears, we're in trouble.
- My heart was pounding in my ears.
- She couldn't see, but her ears told her that the guards had arrived.
- She did not like the scheme, as she made clear every time she found a receptive ear.
- The dog pricked up its ears.
- The explosion set my ears ringing and even made me jump a bit.
- The sound of the blast filled my ears.
- The voices buzzing all around echoed in her ears.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- left
- right
- inner
- …
- plug
- stop
- block
- …
- catch something
- detect something
- hear something
- …
- canal
- drum
- lobe
- …
- in your ear
- be all ears
- beam, grin, smile, etc. from ear to ear
- bend somebody’s ear
- …
- -eared(in adjectives) having the type of ears mentioned
- a long-eared owl
More Like This Compound adjectives for physical characteristicsCompound adjectives for physical characteristics- -beaked
- -bellied
- -billed
- -blooded
- -bodied
- -cheeked
- -chested
- -eared
- -eyed
- -faced
- -fingered
- -footed
- -haired
- -handed
- -headed
- -hearted
- -hipped
- -lidded
- -limbed
- -mouthed
- -necked
- -nosed
- -skinned
- -tailed
- -throated
- -toothed
- [singular] an ability to recognize and copy sounds well
- She has always had an ear for languages.
- You need a good ear to master the piano.
Extra Examples- He has a keen ear for dialogue.
- He has a good ear for accents and can usually tell where a speaker comes from.
- To the trained ear the calls of these birds sound quite different.
- It takes time to attune your ear to the local accent.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- fine
- good
- keen
- …
- have
- attune
- by ear
- ear for
- have a tin ear for something
- [countable] the top part of a grain plant, such as wheat, that contains the seeds
enlarge image- ears of corn
Word Originsenses 1 to 3 Old English ēare, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch oor and German Ohr, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin auris and Greek ous.sense 4 Old English ēar, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch aar and German Ähre.
Idioms
be all ears
- (informal) to be waiting with interest to hear what somebody has to say
- ‘Do you know what he said?’ ‘Go on—I'm all ears.’
bend somebody’s ear (about something)
- (informal) to talk to somebody a lot about something, especially about a problem that you have
be out on your ear
- (informal) to be forced to leave (a job, etc.)
be up to your ears in something
- (informal) to have a lot of something to deal with
- We're up to our ears in work.
box somebody's ears
(also give somebody a box on the ears)
- (old-fashioned) to hit somebody with your hand on the side of their head as a punishment
cock an ear/eye at something/somebody
- to look at or listen to something/somebody carefully and with a lot of attention
something comes to/reaches somebody’s ears
- somebody hears about something, especially when other people already know about it
- News of his affair eventually reached her ears.
somebody’s ears are burning
- a person thinks that other people are talking about them, especially in an unkind way
- ‘I bumped into your ex-wife last night.’ ‘I thought I could feel my ears burning!’
somebody’s ears are flapping
- (British English, informal) a person is trying to listen to somebody else’s conversation
easy on the ear
- (informal) pleasant to listen to
- Their music is all very easy on the ear.
easy on the ear/eye
- (informal) pleasant to listen to or look at
- The room was painted in soft pastels that were easy on the eye.
fall on deaf ears
- to be ignored or not noticed by other people
- Her advice fell on deaf ears.
give somebody/get a thick ear
- (British English, informal) to hit somebody/be hit on the head as a punishment
- You’ll get a thick ear if you’re not careful!
go in one ear and out the other
- (informal) (of information, etc.) to be forgotten quickly
- Everything I tell them just goes in one ear and out the other.
- I knew that my words were going in one ear and out the other.
have something coming out of your ears
- (informal) to have a lot of something, especially more than you need
- That man has money coming out of his ears.
have somebody’s ear | have the ear of somebody
- to be able to give somebody advice, influence them, etc. because they trust you
- He had the ear of the monarch.
- This was the woman who had the ear of the President.
have a word in somebody’s ear
- (British English) to speak to somebody privately about something
- Can I have a word in your ear about tomorrow's presentation?
keep your ears open (for somebody/something)
- to listen out for somebody/something that you might hear
keep your ears/eyes open (for somebody/something)
- to listen or look out for somebody/something that you might hear or see
keep/have your ear to the ground
- to make sure that you always find out about the most recent developments in a particular situation
- The agent had no suitable properties on his books but promised to keep an ear to the ground for us.
lend an ear (to somebody/something)
- to listen in a patient and kind way to somebody
make a pig’s ear (out) of something
- (British English, informal) to do something badly; to make a mess of something
(you can't) make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear
- (you won't) succeed in making something good out of material that does not seem very good at allTopics Successc2
music to your ears
- news or information that you are very pleased to hear
not believe your ears
- (informal) to be very surprised at something you hear
- I couldn't believe my ears when I heard the news.
- She actually apologized. I couldn't believe my ears!
not believe your ears/eyes
- (informal) to be very surprised at something you hear/see
- I couldn't believe my eyes when she walked in.
play (something) by ear
- to play music by remembering how it sounds rather than by reading it
- She usually plays the guitar by ear, rather than reading the music.
play it by ear
- (informal) to decide how to deal with a situation as it develops rather than by having a plan to follow
- I’m not sure how many people are expected—we’ll just have to play it by ear.
prick (up) your ears
- (of an animal, especially a horse or dog) to raise the ears
- (also your ears prick up)(of a person) to listen carefully because you have just heard something interesting; to listen out for something you might hear
- Her ears pricked up at the sound of his name.
- I walked along, ears pricked for the slightest noise.
ring in your ears/head
- to make you feel that you can still hear something
- His warning was still ringing in my ears.
shut/close your ears to something
- to refuse to listen to something
- She decided to shut her ears to all the rumours.
smile/grin/beam from ear to ear
- to be smiling, etc. a lot because you are very pleased about something
- He was beaming from ear to ear.
turn a deaf ear (to somebody/something)
- to ignore or refuse to listen to somebody/something
- He turned a deaf ear to the rumours.
walls have ears
- (saying) used to warn people to be careful what they say because other people may be listening
(still) wet behind the ears
- (informal, disapproving) young and without much experience synonym naive
- He was still wet behind the ears, politically.
with a flea in your ear
- if somebody sends a person away with a flea in their ear, they tell them angrily to go away
with half an ear
- without giving your full attention to what is being said, etc.
- He listened to her with only half an ear as he watched TV.