listener

noun

lis·​ten·​er ˈli-sᵊn-ər 

ˈlis-nər

plural listeners

: one who listens to someone or something

a radio program with many listeners

a friend who's a good listener [=who listens attentively and sympathetically]

Fanny, being always a very courteous listener, and often the only listener at hand, came in for the complaints and distresses of most of them.

—Jane Austen

The average concertgoer drifts in and out of the music, often losing the thread. The listener can't always hear the music in the music, and tends to notice only the most obvious (usually the loudest) events.

—David Schiff

Examples of listener in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On the rap front, Clipse’s Let God Sort ’Em Out, Chance the Rapper, Offset, and JID, provided timeless tracks that listeners can carry well into 2026. —Okla Jones, Essence, 3 Sep. 2025

But to country music listeners, Clever — born Joshua Huie — is mostly a complete unknown. —Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025

And so an urban tunnel not only blocks some satellites, but confuses the listeners as to which are direct or reflected signals. —Steve Tengler, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025

When a book is narrated aloud, a double art form is achieved, the book is interpreted by the narrator, who acts as a lens for the listener. —Adam Verner september 3, Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1572, in the meaning defined above