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Easily confused words in English: Hear and Listen
As I’m preparing to move back to the United States from Argentina and more appropriately out of the city and to a very small town, there are a few things I’m not going to miss. One of these is the noise.
I will be glad to go to bed without hearing my neighbors and walking without hearing the sounds of traffic. I will be able to listen to the sounds of nature again, the sound of wind in the pine trees which I really miss or the sound of my skis swooshing (a soft noise) through the snow. So, I wanted to talk about these easily confused words in English: hear and listen.
Hear
Hear (verb: past=heard) hear is a sense. You hear with your ears. It doesn’t need any thought or brain activity. Hear is passive. I heard a loud noise last night when I was sleeping.
Hear also is to be informed by someone. I heard that she was moving back to Montana.
Listen
Listen (verb: past=listened) Listen is active. You must use your brain as well as your ears to listen. You must make an effort to listen. (to/for)
- I listen to music everyday.
- I was listening for the baby.
Read these questions, then watch the video below and see if you can answer them.
- What was the Hindu saying?
- What can your ears hear?
- Ears are made not for _____ing but for _______ing.
- Who said: “I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.”
- ______ing is an active skill.
- Whereas, _______ing is passive.
- Listening is something we have to _______ at.
- What is reductive and expensive listening?
- Who listens reductively?
- and expansively?
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