ear definition | Dictionary.com

ear

1 [eer]

–noun

the organ of hearing and equilibrium in vertebrates, in humans consisting of an external ear that gathers sound vibrations, a middle ear in which the vibrations resonate against the tympanic membrane, and a fluid-filled internal ear that maintains balance and that conducts the tympanic vibrations to the auditory nerve, which transmits them as impulses to the brain.

2.	the external ear alone: The hat completely covers his ears.

3.	the sense of hearing: sounds that are pleasing to the ear.

4.	keen or sensitive perception of the differences of sound, esp. sensitiveness to the quality and correctness of musical sounds: an ear for music; a violinist with a good ear.

5.	attention; heed: to gain a person's ear.

6.	any part that resembles or suggests an ear in position or form, as the handle of a teacup.

7.	Architecture. crossette.

8.	Journalism. a small box in either upper corner of a newspaper page, usually the front page or split page, containing the name of or a symbol for the edition, a weather bulletin, a slogan, or the like.

Furniture.

a.	a decorative feature at the upper end of a leg.

b.	one of the decorative features at each end of a crest rail.

10.	ears, Slang. earphones.

11.

ear tuft.

—Idioms

12.	be all ears, Informal. to give all one's attention; listen: We were all ears as the scandal was revealed.

13.	bend an ear, to listen attentively: to bend an ear to a request for aid.

14.	bend someone's ear, Informal. to talk to someone uninterruptedly and often so as to induce boredom: He'll bend your ear for hours if given the chance.

15.	by ear, without reference to written or printed music: to play the piano by ear.

16.	fall on deaf ears, to be disregarded; pass unheeded: Their pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears.

17.	give ear, to pay attention; listen carefully. Also, lend an ear.

18.	go in one ear and out the other, to be heard but ignored; be put out of mind: My repeated warnings to her went in one ear and out the other.

19.	have or keep one's ear to the ground, to keep well-informed about current trends; be shrewd or astute: Because she had her ear to the ground, she made a large fortune in stock speculation.

20.	have one's ears on, Slang. to be listening through earphones to a radio, cassette player, telephone communication, or the like.

21.	pin someone's ears back, Slang. to give a person a sound beating; defeat a person utterly: If he doesn't behave himself, I'll pin his ears back.

22.	set by the ears, to cause to dispute or quarrel: He's a troublemaker who keeps trying to set the two other children by the ears.

23.	set on one's ear or ears, to excite or stir up; shock; amaze: The presence of the movie star set the whole town on its ear.

24.	turn a deaf ear to, to refuse to listen to or consider (a request, petition, etc.): He turns a deaf ear to requests for loans.

25.	up to one's ears, deeply involved or occupied to full capacity: We are up to our ears in work.

26.	wet behind the ears. wet (def. 19).

Origin:
bef. 900; ME ere, OE ēare; c. ON eyra, G Ohr, Goth auso, L auris, Lith ausìs, Gk oûs

Related forms:

earless, adjective

earlike, adjective

ear

2 [eer]

–noun

1.	the part of a cereal plant, as corn, wheat, etc., that contains the flowers and hence the fruit, grains, or kernels.

–verb (used without object)

2.	to form or put forth ears.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME ere, OE ēar, æhher; c. G Ahre, ON ax, Goth ahs ear, L acus husk

ear

3 [eer]

–verb (used with object) British Dialect.

to plow; cultivate.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME ere(n), OE erian; c. ON erja, Goth arjan, L arāre

ear tuft

–noun

a tuft of long feathers above the eyes of some owls and other birds that becomes erect when the bird is excited or afraid but is not used in hearing.

Also called ear, horn.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To ear

ear¹ (îr)

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n.

Anatomy
1. The vertebrate organ of hearing, responsible for maintaining equilibrium as well as sensing sound and divided in mammals into the external ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear.
2. The part of this organ that is externally visible.
3. Sharpness or refinement of hearing: a singer with a good ear for harmony.
4. The ability to play a passage of music solely from hearing it: plays the piano by ear.
5. Responsiveness to the sounds or forms of spoken language: a writer with a good ear for dialogue; has an ear for foreign languages.
6. A flexible tuft of feathers located above the eyes of certain birds, such as owls, that functions in visual communication but not in hearing. Also called ear tuft.
7. A projecting handle, as on a vase or pitcher.
An invertebrate organ analogous to the mammalian ear.
The sense of hearing: a sound that grates on the ear.
Sensitivity or receptiveness to sound, especially:
1. Sharpness or refinement of hearing: a singer with a good ear for harmony.
2. The ability to play a passage of music solely from hearing it: plays the piano by ear.
3. Responsiveness to the sounds or forms of spoken language: a writer with a good ear for dialogue; has an ear for foreign languages.
4. A flexible tuft of feathers located above the eyes of certain birds, such as owls, that functions in visual communication but not in hearing. Also called ear tuft.
5. A projecting handle, as on a vase or pitcher.
Sympathetic or favorable attention: "[The President] wavers between the two positions, depending on who last had his ear" (Joseph C. Harsch).
Something resembling the external ear in position or shape, especially:
1. A flexible tuft of feathers located above the eyes of certain birds, such as owls, that functions in visual communication but not in hearing. Also called ear tuft.
2. A projecting handle, as on a vase or pitcher.
A small box in the upper corner of the page in a newspaper or periodical that contains a printed notice, such as promotional material or weather information.
ears Informal Headphones.

[Middle English ere, from Old English ēare; see ous- in Indo-European roots.]
ear'less adj.

ear² (îr)

n. The seed-bearing spike of a cereal plant, such as corn.
intr.v. eared, ear·ing, ears
To form or grow ears.

[Middle English ere, from Old English ēar; see ak- in Indo-European roots.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Ear

Ear\, n. [AS. e['a]re; akin to OFries. ['a]re, ['a]r, OS. ?ra, D. oor, OHG. ?ra, G. ohr, Icel. eyra, Sw. ["o]ra, Dan. ["o]re, Goth. auso, L. auris, Lith. ausis, Russ. ukho, Gr. ?; cf. L. audire to hear, Gr. ?, Skr. av to favor, protect. Cf. Auricle, Orillon.]

1. The organ of hearing; the external ear.

Note: In man and the higher vertebrates, the organ of hearing is very complicated, and is divisible into three parts: the external ear, which includes the pinna or auricle and meatus or external opening; the middle ear, drum, or tympanum; and the internal ear, or labyrinth. The middle ear is a cavity connected by the Eustachian tube with the pharynx, separated from the opening of the external ear by the tympanic membrane, and containing a chain of three small bones, or ossicles, named malleus, incus, and stapes, which connect this membrane with the internal ear. The essential part of the internal ear where the fibers of the auditory nerve terminate, is the membranous labyrinth, a complicated system of sacs and tubes filled with a fluid (the endolymph), and lodged in a cavity, called the bony labyrinth, in the periotic bone. The membranous labyrinth does not completely fill the bony labyrinth, but is partially suspended in it in a fluid (the perilymph). The bony labyrinth consists of a central cavity, the vestibule, into which three semicircular canals and the canal of the cochlea (spirally coiled in mammals) open. The vestibular portion of the membranous labyrinth consists of two sacs, the utriculus and sacculus, connected by a narrow tube, into the former of which three membranous semicircular canals open, while the latter is connected with a membranous tube in the cochlea containing the organ of Corti. By the help of the external ear the sonorous vibrations of the air are concentrated upon the tympanic membrane and set it vibrating, the chain of bones in the middle ear transmits these vibrations to the internal ear, where they cause certain delicate structures in the organ of Corti, and other parts of the membranous labyrinth, to stimulate the fibers of the auditory nerve to transmit sonorous impulses to the brain.

2. The sense of hearing; the perception of sounds; the power of discriminating between different tones; as, a nice ear for music; -- in the singular only.

Songs . . . not all ungrateful to thine ear. --Tennyson.

3. That which resembles in shape or position the ear of an animal; any prominence or projection on an object, -- usually one for support or attachment; a lug; a handle; as, the ears of a tub, a skillet, or dish. The ears of a boat are outside kneepieces near the bow. See Illust. of Bell.

4. (Arch.) (a) Same as Acroterium. (b) Same as Crossette.

5. Privilege of being kindly heard; favor; attention.

Dionysius . . . would give no ear to his suit. --Bacon.

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. --Shak.

About the ears, in close proximity to; near at hand.

By the ears, in close contest; as, to set by the ears; to fall together by the ears; to be by the ears.

Button ear (in dogs), an ear which falls forward and completely hides the inside.

Ear finger, the little finger.

Ear of Dionysius, a kind of ear trumpet with a flexible tube; -- named from the Sicilian tyrant, who constructed a device to overhear the prisoners in his dungeons.

Ear sand (Anat.), otoliths. See Otolith.

Ear snail (Zo["o]l.), any snail of the genus Auricula and allied genera.

Ear stones (Anat.), otoliths. See Otolith.

Ear trumpet, an instrument to aid in hearing. It consists of a tube broad at the outer end, and narrowing to a slender extremity which enters the ear, thus collecting and intensifying sounds so as to assist the hearing of a partially deaf person.

Ear vesicle (Zo["o]l.), a simple auditory organ, occurring in many worms, mollusks, etc. It consists of a small sac containing a fluid and one or more solid concretions or otocysts.

Rose ear (in dogs), an ear which folds backward and shows part of the inside.

To give ear to, to listen to; to heed, as advice or one advising. "Give ear unto my song." --Goldsmith.

To have one's ear, to be listened to with favor.

Up to the ears, deeply submerged; almost overwhelmed; as, to be in trouble up to one's ears. [Colloq.]

Ear

Ear\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Eared; p. pr. & vb. n. Earing.] To take in with the ears; to hear. [Sportive] "I eared her language." --Two Noble Kinsmen.

Ear

Ear\, n. [AS. ear; akin to D. aar, OHG. ahir, G. ["a]hre, Icel., Sw., & Dan. ax, Goth. ahs. ???. Cf. Awn, Edge.] The spike or head of any cereal (as, wheat, rye, barley, Indian corn, etc.), containing the kernels.

First the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. --Mark iv. 28.

Ear

Ear\, v. i. To put forth ears in growing; to form ears, as grain; as, this corn ears well.

Ear

Ear\, v. t. [OE. erien, AS. erian; akin to OFries. era, OHG. erran, MHG. eren, ern, Prov. G. aren, ["a]ren, Icel. erja, Goth. arjan, Lith. arti, OSlav. orati, L. arare, Gr. ?. Cf. Arable.] To plow or till; to cultivate. "To ear the land." --Shak.

Language Translation for : ear

Spanish: oreja,

German: das Ohr,

Japanese: 耳

More Translations »

ear

The organ of hearing, which also plays a role in maintaining balance. It is divided into the outer ear (from the outside to the eardrum), the middle ear, and the inner ear.

ear (1)

"organ of hearing," O.E. eare, from P.Gmc. *auzon (cf. Dan. øre, Ger. Ohr, Goth. auso), from PIE *aus- with a sense of "perception" (cf. Gk. aus, L. auris, Lith. ausis, O.C.S. ucho, O.Ir. au "ear," Avestan usi "the two ears"). The belief that itching or burning ears means someone is talking about you is mentioned in Pliny's "Natural History" (77 C.E.). Until at least the 1880s, even some medical men still believed piercing the ear lobes improved one's eyesight. Meaning "handle of a pitcher" is c.1440. Ear-wax is from 1398. Earshot is first recorded 1607. To be wet behind the ears "naive" is implied from 1914. Phrase walls have ears attested from 1620. Earful "a piece of one's mind" is from 1917; ear-bash (v.) is Australian slang (1944) for "to talk inordinately" (to someone).

ear (2)

"grain part of corn," from O.E. ear (W.Saxon), æher (Northumbrian) "spike, ear of grain," from P.Gmc. *akhaz (gen. *akhizaz), from PIE base *ak- "sharp, pointed" (cf. L. acus "husk of corn;" see acrid).

Main Entry: ear
Pronunciation: 'i(&)r
Function: noun
1 : the characteristic vertebrate organ of hearing and equilibrium consisting in the typicalmammal of a sound-collecting outer ear separated by the tympanic membrane from a sound-transmitting middle ear that in turn is separated from a sensory inner ear by membranous fenestrae
2 a : the external ear of humans and most mammals b : a human earlobe ears pierced>
3 a : the sense or act of hearing b : acuity of hearing

ear (ēr)
n.

The organ of hearing, responsible for maintaining equilibrium as well as sensing sound and divided into the external ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear.
The part of this organ that is externally visible.
The sense of hearing.

ear¹ (îr) Pronunciation Key

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The vertebrate organ of hearing, which in mammals is usually composed of three parts: the outer ear, middle ear, and inner ear. The organs of balance are also located in the ear.
An invertebrate organ analogous to the vertebrate ear.

ear² (îr) Pronunciation Key
The seed-bearing spike of a cereal plant, such as corn or wheat.

Ear

used frequently in a figurative sense (Ps. 34:15). To "uncover the ear" is to show respect to a person (1 Sam. 20:2 marg.). To have the "ear heavy", or to have "uncircumcised ears" (Isa. 6:10), is to be inattentive and disobedient. To have the ear "bored" through with an awl was a sign of perpetual servitude (Ex. 21:6).

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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