earshot

noun

ear·​shot ˈir-ˌshät How to pronounce earshot (audio)
: the range within which one may hear a person's unaided voice
waited until he was out of earshot

Examples of earshot in a Sentence

They were within earshot of each other. babysitters should remain within earshot of young children
Recent Examples on the Web On Wednesday, a New York judge threatened to toss Trump out of the courtroom after the belligerent ex-President could be heard making disparaging comments about Carroll within earshot of the jury. John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 29 Jan. 2024 Soldiers who are being held as prisoners of war were interviewed in person in rebel compounds by a Post journalist, beyond the earshot of their captors. Rebecca Tan, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2024 The game doesn’t telegraph exactly when enemies will take action; some roving guards can be shot to death within easy earshot of another guard, resulting in a quiet return to sneak mode, while sometimes a whole sector will target you because one of your folks stepped an inch out of cover. Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 8 Oct. 2023 Soldiers and police were photographed at the scene of the deaths only after the attack ended, even though troops stationed at nearby military outposts were within earshot of the gunfire and had views of an earlier attack by settlers, the visual evidence shows. Shakked Auerbach, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2024 Within earshot of Gwinn-Villaroel, Browning then made a fake phone call referencing the case. Josh Wood, The Courier-Journal, 4 Jan. 2024 Then, taking unusual and dramatic judicial prerogative, McFadden summoned special counsel prosecutors, including top Jan. 6 investigator Thomas Windom, into his courtroom to explain the matter at the bench, out of public earshot. Robert Legare, CBS News, 21 July 2023 Nobody brought this up at the party in my earshot despite the fact that Zaslav’s recent actions (which as of this week include removing individual credits on Max, née HBO Max, née HBO Go, née HBO Now) may soon cause all three unions to strike. Rachel Handler, Vulture, 25 May 2023 Wilson was testifying at a hearing, outside of the earshot of the jury, to determine whether evidence of Alex Murdaugh's prior financial crimes can be introduced at his double murder trial to prove motive. Fox News, 7 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'earshot.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1607, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of earshot was in 1607

Dictionary Entries Near earshot

Cite this Entry

“Earshot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/earshot. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

earshot

noun
ear·​shot -ˌshät How to pronounce earshot (audio)
: the range within which a person can hear another's unaided voice
waited until he was out of earshot

More from Merriam-Webster on earshot

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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