Listen vs Receive - What's the difference?
listen | receive | Synonyms |
(lb) To pay attention to a sound or speech.
:
*{{quote-book, year=1922, author=(Ben Travers), title=(A Cuckoo in the Nest)
, chapter=1 (lb) To expect or wait for a sound, such as a signal.
:
*
*:It was April 22, 1831, and a young man was walking down Whitehall in the direction of Parliament Street.. He halted opposite the Privy Gardens, and, with his face turned skywards, listened until the sound of the Tower guns smote again on the ear and dispelled his doubts.
*
*:He reined Wrangle to a walk, halted now and then to listen , and then proceeded cautiously with shifting and alert gaze.
(lb) To accept advice or obey instruction; to agree or assent.
:
*
*:Never listen when they tell you that Man and the animals have a common interest.
To hear (something or someone), to pay attention to.
*1485 , Sir (Thomas Malory), (w, Le Morte d'Arthur) , Book XX:
*:‘But, sir, lyars ye have lystened , and that hath caused grete debate betwyxte you and me.’
*1592 , (William Shakespeare), : v 3
*:Lady, vouchsafe to listen what I say.
To take, as something that is offered, given, committed, sent, paid, etc.; to accept; to be given something.
:
*(William Shakespeare) (c.1564–1616)
*:Our hearts receive your warnings.
*(John Locke) (1632-1705)
*:The idea of solidity we receive by our touch.
*(Bible), viii.64:
*:The brazen altar that was before the Lord was too little to receive the burnt offerings.
*, chapter=19
, title= *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-05-25, volume=407, issue=8837, page=74, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= To take possession of.
To act as a host for guests; to give admittance to; to permit to enter, as into one's house, presence, company, etc.
:
*(Bible), (w) xxviii.2:
*:They kindled a fire, and received us every one.
*
*:In former days every tavern of repute kept such a room for its own select circle, a club, or society, of habitués, who met every evening, for a pipe and a cheerful glass.Strangers might enter the room, but they were made to feel that they were there on sufferance: they were received with distance and suspicion.
To suffer from (an injury).
:
To allow (a custom, tradition, etc.); to give credence or acceptance to.
*(Bible), (w) vii.4:
*:Many other things there be which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots.
(lb) To detect a signal from a transmitter.
(lb) To be in a position to take possession, or hit back the ball.
# To be in a position to hit back a service.
#(lb) To be in a position to catch a forward pass.
To accept into the mind; to understand.
*, I.57:
*:I cannot receive that manner, whereby we establish the continuance of our life.
As verbs the difference between listen and receive
is that listen is to pay attention to a sound or speech while receive is to take, as something that is offered, given, committed, sent, paid, etc.; to accept; to be given something.As a noun receive is
an operation in which data is received.listen
English
Verb
(en verb)citation, passage=He read the letter aloud. Sophia listened with the studied air of one for whom, even in these days, a title possessed some surreptitious allurement.}}
Usage notes
In English, listen'' and ''hear'' are two primary verbs relating to audial perception. To (hear) represents automatic, unconscious, or passive perception of sound, while ''listen generally represents intentional, conscious, or purposeful use of the sense of hearing. The difference is expressed in the following quotation: : As the silence took hold in the darkness, Sam realized that she had been hearing', though not '''listening to, various low-level sounds—the hum of air conditioning and life support, the pulse of some faraway oxygen pump, the faint buzz of the electrical and lighting systems. —Justin Richards (1999) ''Demontage , chapter 5, page 92. A similar distinction exists between see'' and ''watch in English.Quotations
* (English Citations of "listen")Synonyms
* (to pay attention) attend, behear, give ear, hark, hear, heed, list, mind, note, pay attention * (to expect or wait for a sound) await, anticipate, expect, wait for * (to accept advice or instruction) agree, assent, mind, obey * (to hear) hear, mind, heed * See alsoAntonyms
* (to pay attention) ignore * (to accept advice or instruction) disobey, disregardCoordinate terms
* speak * talkDerived terms
* listenability * listenable * listener * listenership * listening * listen in * listen up * listening post * listening station * relisten * unlistenableSee also
* hearreceive
English
Alternative forms
* (obsolete)Verb
(receiv)The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=Nothing was too small to receive attention, if a supervising eye could suggest improvements likely to conduce to the common welfare. Mr. Gordon Burnage, for instance, personally visited dust-bins and back premises, accompanied by a sort of village bailiff, going his round like a commanding officer doing billets.}}
No hiding place, passage=In America alone, people spent $170 billion on “direct marketing”—junk mail of both the physical and electronic varieties—last year. Yet of those who received unsolicited adverts through the post, only 3% bought anything as a result.}}
