to keep one's ears open
4
3.7
- idiom
- Informal
:
estar atento
- You may find subjects in your day-to-day life simply by keeping your ears open.
- just keep your ears open
Examples
-
As a journalist, you must keep your ears open to capture interesting stories that others may miss.
-
Nestor squatted on a stool, ordered a Sprite, and kept his ears open.
Fiction book (1998) -
I suggest you keep your ears open.
-
Look, do me a favor and keep your ears open for me, will ya?
-
All right, son, I'll keep my ears open for you.
-
I'll keep my ears open for you.
-
Either way, keep your ears open for any clues about their plans for October and beyond.
Blog text (24) -
Well, during the war, for instance, I never would have dreamed that Edith was a German spy if I hadn't kept my ears open.
-
At the meeting, the manager advised everyone to keep their ears open for any news about the upcoming project.
-
When you're traveling in a foreign country, it's wise to keep your ears open for local customs and safety tips.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To look at something carefully for some time
∞
1.0
Pay attention to advice or warnings and act on them
∞
1.0
Listen to someone carefully to consider what they say
∞
1.6
To focus on someone or something and notice carefully
619
2.4
To watch something carefully to learn about it
408
2.4
To watch someone or something carefully to make sure nothing bad happens
291
3.0
Watch carefully to notice danger or help someone
153
1.6
Watch for danger or trouble
134
3.2
Watch carefully for someone or something
98
3.5
To wait and pay attention for more news or updates
97
3.8
Watch carefully for danger or a chance
69
3.4
Pay attention to something to remember or think about it
43
3.9
To watch someone or something closely over time to see what happens
42
3.5
To see and pay attention to something
28
3.4
To watch carefully so you notice danger or changes
16
4.6
Watch carefully for something important or dangerous
11
6.2
Pay careful attention to advice or warnings
8
3.0
Look at a person or thing very carefully for a while to notice problems
5
7.9
Stay half awake and watch for danger while you sleep because you are afraid
2
4.5
To listen carefully to advice or warnings
1
8.1
To stay very alert and watch what is happening around you
1
6.0
Watch carefully for something you expect to see
1
6.2
To listen carefully to someone
1
7.7
To be alert and ready to act
1
6.4
To pay careful attention to what someone says or does
To pay close attention to what people say and do to know what is happening
Make someone stay alert and ready for surprises
Antonyms
How Alert
- Informal
1
6.0
- Informal
4
3.7
28
3.4
∞
1.6
∞
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from the parts: 'keep' (continue) plus 'ears' (hearing organs) plus 'open' (receptive) yields the sense 'remain receptive/alert and listen for information.' This is a transparent body-part metaphor that follows common compositional patterns and is likely inferable by a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.
Etymology
Keep one's ears open comes from the simple image of someone listening carefully, keeping their ears wide open to catch sounds or news. So it means 'to notice or learn something' by staying alert and ready to hear important information.