hear
To perceive sound with the ears; to listen.
Etymology
From Old English hīeran, from Proto-Germanic *hauzijaną, from PIE *h₂ḱew- "to perceive, to hear." A closely related but distinct PIE root is *ḱlew- "to hear, to listen," which gave "loud" (what is heard) and through Greek kléos "fame." The *ḱlew- root also yielded Latin cluēre, contributing to "include," "conclude," "exclude." English "hear" itself descends from *h₂ḱew-, not *ḱlew-.
The Journey: *h₂ḱew- → hear
*ḱlew-
*hlūdaz (loud)
hlūd
loud
loud
Cognates Across Languages
These words in other languages descend from the same PIE root *h₂ḱew-. They are not borrowings but independent inheritances from a common ancestor.
| Language | Word |
|---|---|
| Greek | kléos (glory, fame) |
| Latin | cluēre (to be called) |
| Sanskrit | śrávas (fame) |
| Old Irish | clú (fame) |
| Lithuanian | klausýti (to listen) |
| Old Church Slavonic | slovo (word) |
Did You Know?
In PIE culture, hearing and fame were the same concept — *ḱlew- meant "to hear" but also "to be heard of." Greek kléos means "glory" (literally "what is heard about you"). Achilles sought kléos áphthiton — "undying fame" — using a word that simply meant "hearing."
This word descends from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂ḱew-. See the full root page for descendant trees, sound law references, and scholarly discussion.