as in hearing
to listen to (another in private conversation)
it's not polite to try to overhear intimate friends sharing confidences
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Recent Examples of overhearing
Haley began making the octopi after overhearing a nurse saying some would be helpful in the NICU.
—
ABC News, 26 Feb. 2026
The internal monologue is perhaps the more obvious choice for paranoid fiction, but by writing in dialogue, Dorfman puts us in the place of the listener with an ear pressed to a closed door, overhearing the anxious voices.
—James Folta, Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
Dogs also learned new object names by overhearing them.
—Liz Regalia, Parents, 25 Jan. 2026
Hyman remembers overhearing a conversation between Stecher and then-Oilers assistant coach Paul Coffey as the trade deadline approached.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
When repeating the tests with dogs that weren't considered GWLs however, the team did not find any significant correlation between overhearing and learning, a finding of significance according to Dror.
—New Atlas, 9 Jan. 2026
Toddlers can pick up new words just by overhearing conversations.
—Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 8 Jan. 2026
As when just standing in the Mingus Quick Stop parking lot and squinting down the street at lifting dust while overhearing from within the most mysterious conversation about missing Little Debbie Honey Buns—not stolen, gradually pilfered, but just missing.
—David Searcy, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
While the first half of this conversation points to the former, the next part, in which Shane asks if Ilya’s father is okay after overhearing a tense phone call, suggests the latter.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
ABC News, 26 Feb. 2026
The internal monologue is perhaps the more obvious choice for paranoid fiction, but by writing in dialogue, Dorfman puts us in the place of the listener with an ear pressed to a closed door, overhearing the anxious voices.
—James Folta, Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
Dogs also learned new object names by overhearing them.
—Liz Regalia, Parents, 25 Jan. 2026
Hyman remembers overhearing a conversation between Stecher and then-Oilers assistant coach Paul Coffey as the trade deadline approached.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
When repeating the tests with dogs that weren't considered GWLs however, the team did not find any significant correlation between overhearing and learning, a finding of significance according to Dror.
—New Atlas, 9 Jan. 2026
Toddlers can pick up new words just by overhearing conversations.
—Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 8 Jan. 2026
As when just standing in the Mingus Quick Stop parking lot and squinting down the street at lifting dust while overhearing from within the most mysterious conversation about missing Little Debbie Honey Buns—not stolen, gradually pilfered, but just missing.
—David Searcy, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
While the first half of this conversation points to the former, the next part, in which Shane asks if Ilya’s father is okay after overhearing a tense phone call, suggests the latter.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overhearing
Verb
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Dhawan-Maloney said the judges hearing these cases have a high denial rate.—
Ubah Ali,
CBS News,
18 Mar. 2026
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The story follows a man who takes his sprawling family on a frantic one-day pilgrimage to nine Buddhist temples after hearing a prophecy that his elderly mother may not have long to live.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Mizan also reported that Iran executed a man on charges of spying for Israel's Mossad intelligence agency.—
DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE STAFF FROM WIRE REPORTS,
Arkansas Online,
19 Mar. 2026
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Mizan also reported that Iran executed a man on charges of spying for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency.—
Jon Gambrell,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said his office was monitoring the deployment of federal officers at O'Hare International.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
24 Mar. 2026
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In that same survey, Americans said NASA’s top priorities should be monitoring asteroids that could hit Earth and monitoring Earth’s climate system.—
Sarah D. Wire,
USA Today,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
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When Sonny eventually passes out, Chee starts doing some snooping around.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
16 Mar. 2026
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Thornton, a vice president of strategic communications who has worked downtown for 17 years, including a decade with AIMCLEAR, was no stranger to snooping on behalf of his colleagues and his employer.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
5 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overhearing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overhearing. Accessed 24 Mar. 2026.
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