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

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for listen in (on)
  1. hear
  2. monitor
  3. spy
  4. overhear
Verb
  • Patterson wasn’t in court to hear the proceedings but listened to the arguments via a video link from a maximum-security prison.
    — Hilary Whiteman, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2026
  • After hearing four days of testimony, a Collin County jury found Anthony, 19, guilty of murder following three hours of deliberation on June 9.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of hear
Verb
  • There are methods to monitor workloads, whether by shortening starts or skipping them altogether.
    — Chandler Rome, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The government had checked a hundred and fifty thousand names against its files, actively monitoring immigrants and citizens alike, and deported at least seventy-eight people.
    — Rozina Ali, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of monitor
Verb
  • Why does English football view spying as a heinous crime while other countries openly admit to using drones to study upcoming opponents?
    — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The prevalence of LRDs in the early universe would align with the emergence of supermassive black holes, each weighing millions to billions of suns apiece, which astronomers spy at the hearts of large galaxies.
    — Lee Billings, Scientific American, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of spy
Verb
  • Eve’s Hollywood, gossipy and full of anecdote captures a more recent version of the conversations Arzner used to overhear at her father’s Hollywood restaurant.
    — Anne E. Fernald, Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Amabile’s wife, Serena Pitt, can be overheard asking him as another staple is clipped out and placed into a plastic container.
    — Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Aug. 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 24 Aug. 2026.

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