to give ear
1
6.2
- idiom
- Archaic
:
prestar oído
- Although it is the main thing you should do on the matter, it will not hurt you to give ear to your friends and family.
Examples
-
Give ear to the words of my mouth.
-
In the name of the gods, then, give ear to my words.
-
Give ear to our words, o Manos, and hear us!
-
Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my sighing.
Blog text (7) -
Please give ear to my advice before making a decision.
-
The teacher asked the students to give ear to the instructions carefully.
-
If you give ear to their concerns, they will feel valued and heard.
Synonyms
∞
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
143
7.5
To listen very closely to every word someone says
92
3.2
Listen to someone until they finish speaking
86
4.4
Listen to someone until they finish speaking
22
3.2
To listen or watch carefully
11
6.2
Pay careful attention to advice or warnings
4
3.7
Stay alert to hear useful news or information
3
3.2
To listen to someone and show you care
2
4.5
To listen carefully to advice or warnings
1
6.4
To pay careful attention to what someone says or does
1
9.9
To listen carefully and pay attention
Antonyms
How Attentive
Surface Forms
Morphology
give + ear
The meaning 'to listen carefully' can be inferred from the components since 'ear' denotes hearing and 'give' here means to grant attention, so the sense is related to the literal parts. However, the construction is somewhat metaphorical and slightly archaic/uncommon compared with more typical forms like 'lend an ear', so a B1 learner might need some exposure to be fully confident.
Etymology
Give ear comes from a simple picture: you give someone your ear by leaning in and letting them speak close to you. So to give ear means 'to listen carefully'.