listen in (on)

verb

Definition of listen in (on)next
as in to eavesdrop (on)
to listen to (another in private conversation) it's not polite to listen in on other people's private conversations

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for listen in (on)
  1. hear
  2. monitor
  3. spy
  4. overhear
Verb
  • At night, Ghaida hears Israeli drones overhead, despite the ceasefire.
    — Ava Bambuck, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Sarah Miller, a software engineer from the liberal stronghold of Madison, has heard all of the chatter about a civil war in the Democratic Party between progressives and moderates.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of hear
Verb
  • There are other existing and emerging satellite constellations capable of detecting and monitoring wildfires and wildfire smoke.
    — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The Voyagers have been skirting this dismal fate for years now, with NASA engineers carefully monitoring each spacecraft’s power supplies and plotting out when to turn off individual instruments to keep the missions going as long as possible.
    — Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of monitor
Verb
  • Just across the sea lie North Korea, China and Russia, which all have powerful spying capacities that Japan isn’t fully equipped to fend off.
    — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 31 July 2026
  • Turkish, Asian and Chinese brands flooded in at first, spying a once-in-a-generation opportunity to hoover up prime real estate.
    — Mark Faithfull, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
Definition of spy
Verb
  • Burial is far and away the blueprint here, evident in the vespertine pads, tape hiss, and hauntological vocal flips, deployed as if overheard from a distant astral plane.
    — Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 23 July 2026
  • But, as tends to happen on these types of shows, Alex manages to overhear their conversation.
    — Allison DeGrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 19 July 2026
Definition of overhear
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

listening (to)
listen in (on)
listens
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Listen in (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/listen%20in%20%28on%29. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of anecdote

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All