LISTEN vs HEAR - BUSINESS ENGLISH FOR BUSY GERMANS:

Common mistake I hear often in my training sessions.

    ⁃    Hear, I need to tell you something
    ⁃    I listened a great new song on the radio
    ⁃    I’m hearing a great podcast at the moment

It’s important to learn the difference as mistaking these verbs can lead to misunderstanding in English.

Consider the following two examples:

    ⁃    I didn’t hear you
    ⁃    I didn’t listen to you

This first expresses the inability to understand someone, while the second has a negative connotation; meaning the intention was not to listen.

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Let’s start by looking at WHY you make the mistake.

The confusion you face is when trying to translate the German verb: ‘HÖREN’.

‘HÖREN’ alone translates to the English word ‘HEAR’.

Add the prefix, ‘ZUHÖREN’ or ‘ANHÖREN’; and it translates to the English word ‘LISTEN’.

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Let’s fix this with just a couple of basic rules.

To ‘LISTEN’ is active. It is a prolonged action and it is intentional. In most cases,  when followed by a direct object, it is used with the preposition ‘TO’:

    ⁃    I am listening TO a great podcast.
    ⁃    What kind of music do you listen TO?
    ⁃    You haven’t listened TO a word I’ve said.

If ‘LISTEN’ is used as a command or a request, in combination with an adverb and without a direct object, there is no need to use the preposition ‘TO’:

    ⁃    Listen carefully and you might hear it (without a direct object)
    ⁃    Listen, we really need to get this finished (command or a request)
    ⁃    We listened closely as the results were read out (in combination with an adverb)

To ‘HEAR’ expresses natural ability to hear. It is unintentional:

    ⁃    He heard a noise outside.
    ⁃    I can hear the dogs barking.
    ⁃    Speak louder please, I can’t hear you.

Look at the following sentences to see both verbs being used correctly together:

    ⁃    LISTEN, Do you HEAR that? 
    ⁃    LISTEN carefully and you might HEAR the birds.
    ⁃    LISTEN to what he is saying if you want to HEAR the good news.

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EXCEPTION

Sometimes, ‘HEAR’ can be very close in meaning to ‘LISTEN’:

    ⁃    The people came to HEAR him speak.
    ⁃    I HEARD the band at the festival on the weekend.
    ⁃    Have you HEARD the podcast about the sense of hearing?

In these examples, ‘LISTEN TO’ could replace ‘HEAR’.

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Learning to differentiate between these two verbs will make a difference to your English communication and help to avoid common misunderstandings.

Remember:

🇩🇪’HÖREN’ = 🇬🇧’HEAR’
🇩🇪‘ZUHÖREN’ or ‘ANHÖREN’ = 🇬🇧’LISTEN TO’

‘LISTEN TO’ is an Intentional activity
‘HEAR’ is the unintentional or natural ability to hear something

Listen carefully to your English-speaking counterparts and see if you can hear these verbs in use.

For more useful tips to improve your English, make sure to give me a follow and tune into my “Better English Better Business’ podcast on your favourite platform at https://bebb.letscast.fm/