ENGLISH
REFERENCE

listening

n. uncountable
A1 Beginner US //ˈɫɪsənɪŋ// UK //lˈɪsənɪŋ// lis·ten·ing

n. the act of paying attention to sounds or speech. It is a skill you use to understand what people are saying.

n. the active process of receiving and interpreting auditory stimuli. Often used in educational contexts to refer to one of the four core language skills.


SIMPLE

Good listening is important for learning a new language.

CONTEXTUAL

The teacher noticed that the students' listening improved significantly after they started watching movies without subtitles.

COMPLEX

Active listening requires the listener to provide verbal and non-verbal feedback to the speaker, ensuring that the intended message is fully understood without bias.

Synonyms
Etymology 1

From Middle English listnynge, lustninde, from Old English hlysnende, equivalent to listen + -ing.

Etymology 2

From Middle English listnynge, lustnynge, lystenynge, equivalent to listen + -ing.

Usage

Often functions as a gerund; frequently paired with 'skills' or 'comprehension'.

Pitfall

I am listening youI am listening to youWhen 'listening' is used as a verb, it requires the preposition 'to' before an object.

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