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Origin and history of heard

heard

past tense and past participle of hear, Old English herde. To have heard of "know about" is from 1907.

Entries linking to heard

hear(v.)

Old English heran (Anglian), (ge)hieran, hyran (West Saxon) "to hear, perceive by the ear, listen (to), obey, follow; accede to, grant; judge," from Proto-Germanic *hausejanan (source also of Old Norse heyra, Old Frisian hera, hora, Dutch horen, German hören, Gothic hausjan "to hear"), from PIE root *kous- "to hear" (source also of Greek koein "to mark, perceive, hear;" see acoustic). The shift from *-s- to -r- is a regular feature in some Germanic languages. For the vowels, see head (n.).

Spelling distinction between hear and here developed 1200-1550. Meaning "be told, learn by report" is from early 14c. Old English also had the excellent adjective hiersum "ready to hear, obedient," literally "hear-some" with suffix from handsome, etc. Hear, hear! (1680s) originally was imperative, an exclamation to call attention to a speaker's words ("hear him!"); now a general cheer of approval. To not hear of "have nothing to do with" is from 1754.

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    loud
    Old English hlud "noisy; making or emitting noise" (of voices, musical instruments, etc.), from Proto-Germanic *hludaz "heard...Dutch luid, Old High German hlut, German laut "loud"), from PIE *klutos- (source also of Sanskrit srutah, Greek klytos "heard...
    gurgle
    early 15c., medical term for "gurgling heard in the abdomen," a native, echoic formation, or ultimately from Latin gurguliare...
    geophagy
    I heard various speculations on the origin of this singular propensity, called 'geophagy' in some medical books....
    seen
    [Locke, 1706] The saw or vulgar maxim about children being best seen and not heard (by 1816) was previously of maids specifically...It has been said that women, like children, should be "seen and not heard."...
    long-distance
    He constructed telephones expressly for long-distance work, and succeeded in getting a bugle-call heard distinctly over 400...
    say
    The meaning "right or authority to be heard in a matter or influence a decision" is from 1610s in have a say; earlier in...
    kudos
    especially in battle, "a poetical word, found chiefly in the Iliad and Odyssey" [Century Dictionary], literally "that which is heard...
    pickup
    also pick-up, "that which is picked up," 1848; see pick up (v.). As "act of picking up" from 1882. Meaning "capacity for acceleration" is from 1909; that of "recovery" is from 1916. In reference to a game between informal teams chosen on the spot, from 1905; as an adjective, "com
    pick up
    early 14c. as a verbal phrase, "lift and take with the fingers," from pick (v.) + up (adv.). From 1510s as "take or get casually, obtain or procure as opportunity offers." Meaning "take (a person found or overtaken) into a vehicle or vessel," is from 1690s, also, of persons, "mak
    rivet
    c. 1300, "cinch on a nail;" c. 1400, "short metal pin or bolt inserted through a hole at the junction of two or more metal pieces," the point then hammered broad to hold them together; from Old French rivet "nail, rivet," from river "to clench, fix, fasten," which is of uncertain

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