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Glite Dictionary
cloth-ear

cloth-ear

9.9
A person who does not listen carefully and misses important details
  • noun
  • Offensive
translation icon : sordo
  • Stop being a cloth-ear and pay attention to what I'm saying.

Examples

  • Sometimes I feel like a cloth-ear when I miss important details in meetings.

  • Don't be such a cloth-ear!

  • My teacher called me a cloth-ear after I failed to follow the simple instructions.

  • Why are you acting like a cloth-ear today?

  • My teacher called me a cloth-ear after I failed to follow the simple instructions.

  • Sometimes I feel like a cloth-ear when I miss important details in meetings.

  • Stop being a cloth-ear and pay attention to what I'm saying.

Antonyms

listener
228 1.0

A person who pays attention and hears what others say

How Attentive

observer
305 2.8
cloth-ear
  • Offensive
9.9
forgetter
6.3

Surface Forms

cloth-ear singular
cloth-ears plural

Morphology

cloth-ear = cloth + ear (opaque) = cloth + ear

Although formed from the clear words 'cloth' and 'ear', the idiomatic sense 'an inattentive or unobservant person / someone who does not listen' cannot be derived by regular compositional rules.

Etymology

The word cloth-ear creates a simple picture: imagine a cloth over your ear, so sound cannot get through. That's why a 'cloth-ear' is someone who does not listen or pay attention.