LISTENS IN (ON) Synonyms: 14 Similar Words

listens in (on)

verb

present tense third-person singular of listen in (on)

as in eavesdrops (on)

to listen to (another in private conversation) it's not polite to listen in on other people's private conversations

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for listens in (on)

Verb

Any attempt to relieve the pressure on prisons shifts onto the probation service, which monitors offenders serving their sentence in the community.

— Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2026
Business owners, technology leaders and risk teams need clarity about who owns the process, who determines acceptable risk, who monitors performance and who has the authority to intervene.

— Jayasri Ranganathan, Forbes.com, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of monitors

Verb

Every audience hears about the tweets from Michigan’s William Lawrence, condemning the nuclear family, and New York’s Darializa Avila Chevalier, about how July 4 should be about the liberation of Palestine and Puerto Rico.

— David Weigel, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026
In the song’s closing moments, the Edge hears something older than country music in Parton’s voice.

— Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of hears

Verb

Late one night, Clark spies what appears to be a sliver of light coming through a crack in the wall of the store’s basement.

— David Fear, Rolling Stone, 14 June 2026
In Giovanni Battista Tiepolo’s The Finding of Moses, a dog spies a young girl whose presence unlocks the painting’s meaning.

— Boris Kachka, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026

Definition of spies

Verb

Nathan overhears a snippet of this exchange, which convinces him that Joe is engaged in an all-out smear campaign against him.

— Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 1 Sep. 2026
At one point, Piker overhears his brother telling me about his old job as an aerospace engineer at Boeing.

— Josh Eells, Rolling Stone, 9 Aug. 2026

Definition of overhears

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

listens

listens in (on)

listens (to)

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Listens in (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/listens%20in%20%28on%29. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of listens in (on)

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Luddite

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes