headphone

noun

head·​phone ˈhed-ˌfōn 

plural headphones

: an earphone held over the ear by a band worn on the head

—usually plural

So for the gamer to gain that "edge," he must have the best mouse, the smoothest mouse pad or the most sensitive headphones.

—Chris Yong

Strapping on cushy headphones the size of loaves of bread, I'd repeatedly listen to Mingus' "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" and the music of artists such as Jelly Roll Morton and Billie Holiday.

—Robert Wilder

also : a small earphone inserted into the ear : earbud

in-ear headphones

Examples of headphone in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Its cover features Jackson wearing headphones and biting down on a mouthpiece as if she’s being prepped for shock treatment. — Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 18 Aug. 2026

If the Apple rumor mill is to be believed, the company may be preparing its own take on the camera-headphone concept—but with one significant departure from everything described above. — Tim Bajarin, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026

Playing a song in a car or through a set of headphones counts as a single stream, but what about a track dropped in a room full of hundreds of sweaty bodies? — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 14 Aug. 2026

Like many modern turntables, this one gives the user the option of analog connection to a hi-fi system via RCA outputs or Bluetooth pairing to wireless speakers or headphones. — New Atlas, 14 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for headphone

• alone
• atone
• backbone
• bemoan
• bluestone
• breastbone
• brownstone
• capstone
• cheekbone
• condone
• curbstone
• cyclone

Kids Definition

headphone

noun

head·​phone ˈhed-ˌfōn 

: an earphone held over the ear by a band worn on the head

—usually used in plural