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Ear - Dictionary Definition and Overview |
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Ear : (noun)
1: the sense organ for hearing and equilibrium
2: good hearing; "he had a keen ear"; "a good ear for pitch"
3: the externally visible cartilaginous structure of the
external ear [syn: auricle, pinna]
4: attention to what is said; "he tried to get her ear"
5: fruiting spike of a cereal plant especially corn [syn: spike,
capitulum]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Ear : \Ear\, n. [AS. e['a]re; akin to OFries. ['a]re, ['a]r, OS.
?ra, D. oor, OHG. ?ra, G. ohr, Icel. eyra, Sw. ["o]ra, Dan.
["o]re, Goth. auso, L. auris, Lith. ausis, Russ. ukho, Gr. ?;
cf. L. audire to hear, Gr. ?, Skr. av to favor, protect. Cf.
Auricle, Orillon.]
1. The organ of hearing; the external ear.
Note: In man and the higher vertebrates, the organ of hearing
is very complicated, and is divisible into three parts:
the external ear, which includes the pinna or auricle
and meatus or external opening; the middle ear, drum,
or tympanum; and the internal ear, or labyrinth. The
middle ear is a cavity connected by the Eustachian tube
with the pharynx, separated from the opening of the
external ear by the tympanic membrane, and containing a
chain of three small bones, or ossicles, named malleus,
incus, and stapes, which connect this membrane with the
internal ear. The essential part of the internal ear
where the fibers of the auditory nerve terminate, is
the membranous labyrinth, a complicated system of sacs
and tubes filled with a fluid (the endolymph), and
lodged in a cavity, called the bony labyrinth, in the
periotic bone. The membranous labyrinth does not
completely fill the bony labyrinth, but is partially
suspended in it in a fluid (the perilymph). The bony
labyrinth consists of a central cavity, the vestibule,
into which three semicircular canals and the canal of
the cochlea (spirally coiled in mammals) open. The
vestibular portion of the membranous labyrinth consists
of two sacs, the utriculus and sacculus, connected by a
narrow tube, into the former of which three membranous
semicircular canals open, while the latter is connected
with a membranous tube in the cochlea containing the
organ of Corti. By the help of the external ear the
sonorous vibrations of the air are concentrated upon
the tympanic membrane and set it vibrating, the chain
of bones in the middle ear transmits these vibrations
to the internal ear, where they cause certain delicate
structures in the organ of Corti, and other parts of
the membranous labyrinth, to stimulate the fibers of
the auditory nerve to transmit sonorous impulses to the
brain.
2. The sense of hearing; the perception of sounds; the power
of discriminating between different tones; as, a nice ear
for music; -- in the singular only.
Songs . . . not all ungrateful to thine ear.
--Tennyson.
3. That which resembles in shape or position the ear of an
animal; any prominence or projection on an object, --
usually one for support or attachment; a lug; a handle;
as, the ears of a tub, a skillet, or dish. The ears of a
boat are outside kneepieces near the bow. See Illust. of
Bell.
4. (Arch.)
(a) Same as Acroterium.
(b) Same as Crossette.
5. Privilege of being kindly heard; favor; attention.
Dionysius . . . would give no ear to his suit.
--Bacon.
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.
--Shak.
About the ears, in close proximity to; near at hand.
By the ears, in close contest; as, to set by the ears; to
fall together by the ears; to be by the ears.
Button ear (in dogs), an ear which falls forward and
completely hides the inside.
Ear finger, the little finger.
Ear of Dionysius, a kind of ear trumpet with a flexible
tube; -- named from the Sicilian tyrant, who constructed a
device to overhear the prisoners in his dungeons.
Ear sand (Anat.), otoliths. See Otolith.
Ear snail (Zo["o]l.), any snail of the genus Auricula and
allied genera.
Ear stones (Anat.), otoliths. See Otolith.
Ear trumpet, an instrument to aid in hearing. It consists
of a tube broad at the outer end, and narrowing to a
slender extremity which enters the ear, thus collecting
and intensifying sounds so as to assist the hearing of a
partially deaf person.
Ear vesicle (Zo["o]l.), a simple auditory organ, occurring
in many worms, mollusks, etc. It consists of a small sac
containing a fluid and one or more solid concretions or
otocysts.
Rose ear (in dogs), an ear which folds backward and shows
part of the inside.
To give ear to, to listen to; to heed, as advice or one
advising. ``Give ear unto my song.'' --Goldsmith.
To have one's ear, to be listened to with favor.
Up to the ears, deeply submerged; almost overwhelmed; as,
to be in trouble up to one's ears. [Colloq.]
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Ear : \Ear\, v. t. [OE. erien, AS. erian; akin to OFries. era,
OHG. erran, MHG. eren, ern, Prov. G. aren, ["a]ren, Icel.
erja, Goth. arjan, Lith. arti, OSlav. orati, L. arare, Gr. ?.
Cf. Arable.]
To plow or till; to cultivate. ``To ear the land.'' --Shak.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Ear : \Ear\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Eared; p. pr. & vb. n.
Earing.]
To take in with the ears; to hear. [Sportive] ``I eared her
language.'' --Two Noble Kinsmen.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Ear : \Ear\, n. [AS. ear; akin to D. aar, OHG. ahir, G. ["a]hre,
Icel., Sw., & Dan. ax, Goth. ahs. ???. Cf. Awn, Edge.]
The spike or head of any cereal (as, wheat, rye, barley,
Indian corn, etc.), containing the kernels.
First the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn
in the ear. --Mark iv. 28.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Ear : \Ear\, v. i.
To put forth ears in growing; to form ears, as grain; as,
this corn ears well.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Canon \Can"on\, n. [OE. canon, canoun, AS. canon rule (cf. F.
canon, LL. canon, and, for sense 7, F. chanoine, LL.
canonicus), fr. L. canon a measuring line, rule, model, fr.
Gr. ? rule, rod, fr. ?, ?, red. See Cane, and cf.
Canonical.]
1. A law or rule.
Or that the Everlasting had not fixed His canon
'gainst self-slaughter. --Shak.
2. (Eccl.) A law, or rule of doctrine or discipline, enacted
by a council and confirmed by the pope or the sovereign; a
decision, regulation, code, or constitution made by
ecclesiastical authority.
Various canons which were made in councils held in
the second centry. --Hock.
3. The collection of books received as genuine Holy
Scriptures, called the sacred canon, or general rule of
moral and religious duty, given by inspiration; the Bible;
also, any one of the canonical Scriptures. See Canonical
books, under Canonical, a.
4. In monasteries, a book containing the rules of a religious
order.
5. A catalogue of saints acknowledged and canonized in the
Roman Catholic Church.
6. A member of a cathedral chapter; a person who possesses a
prebend in a cathedral or collegiate church.
7. (Mus.) A musical composition in which the voices begin one
after another, at regular intervals, successively taking
up the same subject. It either winds up with a coda
(tailpiece), or, as each voice finishes, commences anew,
thus forming a perpetual fugue or round. It is the
strictest form of imitation. See Imitation.
8. (Print.) The largest size of type having a specific name;
-- so called from having been used for printing the canons
of the church.
9. The part of a bell by which it is suspended; -- called
also ear and shank.
Note: [See Illust. of Bell.] --Knight.
10. (Billiards) See Carom.
Apostolical canons. See under Apostolical.
Augustinian canons, Black canons. See under
Augustinian.
Canon capitular, Canon residentiary, a resident member of
a cathedral chapter (during a part or the whole of the
year).
Canon law. See under Law.
Canon of the Mass (R. C. Ch.), that part of the mass,
following the Sanctus, which never changes.
Honorary canon, a canon who neither lived in a monastery,
nor kept the canonical hours.
Minor canon (Ch. of Eng.), one who has been admitted to a
chapter, but has not yet received a prebend.
Regular canon (R. C. Ch.), one who lived in a conventual
community and follower the rule of St. Austin; a Black
canon.
Secular canon (R. C. Ch.), one who did not live in a
monastery, but kept the hours.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Crossette \Cros*sette"\ (kr?s-s?t`), n. [F., dim. of crosse. See
Crosier.] (Arch.)
(a) A return in one of the corners of the architrave of a
door or window; -- called also ancon, ear, elbow.
(b) The shoulder of a joggled keystone.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Ear : used frequently in a figurative sense (Ps. 34:15). To "uncover
the ear" is to show respect to a person (1 Sam. 20:2 marg.). To
have the "ear heavy", or to have "uncircumcised ears" (Isa.
6:10), is to be inattentive and disobedient. To have the ear
"bored" through with an awl was a sign of perpetual servitude
(Ex. 21:6).
Based on Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [Bible_Dictionary]:
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Ear : Ear: The hearing organ. There are three sections of the ear, according to the anatomy textbooks. They are the outer ear (the part we see along the sides of our head behind the temples), the
middle ear, and the inner ear. But in terms of function, the ear has four parts: those three and the brain. Hearing thus involves all parts of the ear as well as the auditory cortex of the brain. The
external ear helps concentrate the vibrations of air on the ear drum and make it vibrate. These vibrations are transmitted by a chain of little bones in the middle ear to the inner ear. There they
stimulate the fibers of the auditory nerve to transmit impulses to the brain.
The outer ear looks complicated but it is the simplest part of the ear. It consists of the pinna or auricle (the visible projecting portion of the ear), the external acoustic meatus (the
outside opening to the ear canal), and the external ear canal that leads to the ear drum. In sum, there is the pinna, the meatus and the canal. That's all. And the external ear has only to concentrate
air vibrations on the ear drum and make the drum vibrate.
The middle ear consists of the ear drum (the tympanum or tympanic membrane) and, beyond it, a cavity. This cavity is connected via a canal (the Eustachian tube) to the pharynx (the
nasopharynx). The Eustachian tube permits the gas pressure in the middle ear cavity to adjust to external air pressure (so, as you're descending in a plane, it's the Eustachian tube that opens when
your ears "open").) The middle ear cavity also contains a chain of 3 little bones (ossicles) that connect the ear drum to the internal ear. The ossicles are named (not the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa
Maria but) the malleus, incus, and stapes. In sum, the middle ear communicates with the pharynx, equilibrates with external pressure and transmits the ear drum vibrations to the inner ear.
The internal ear is highly complex. The essential component of the inner ear for hearing is the membranous labyrinth where the fibers of the auditory nerve (the nerve connecting the ear to
the brain) end. The membranous labyrinth is a system of communicating sacs and ducts (tubes) filled with fluid (the endolymph). The membranous labyrinth is lodged within a cavity called the bony
labyrinth. At some points the membranous labyrinth is attached to the bony labyrinth and at other points the membranous labyrinth is suspended in a fluid (the perilymph) within the bony labyrinth. The
bony labyrinth has three parts: a central cavity (the vestibule), semicircular canals (which open into the vestibule) and the cochlea (a snail-shaped spiral tube). The membranous labyrinth also has a
vestibule which consists of two sacs (called the utriculus and sacculus) connected by a narrow tube. The utriculus, the larger of the two sacs, is the principal organ of the vestibular system (which
informs us about the position and movement of the head). The smaller of the two sacs, the sacculus (literally, the little sac) is connected with a membranous tube in the cochlea containing the organ of
Corti. It is in the organ of Corti that are situated the hair cells, the special sensory receptors for hearing.
Based on Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [Bible_Dictionary]:
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Example Usage of Ear |
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KatieFahrer: Let me, let me, let me tell you what i wanna hEar. Let me whisper in your Ear. Cuz the secrets out and beyond a doubt no ones listenin... |
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itsme62: @mymanmitch Could you PLEASE put the bug in human services Ear that they did fail my house due to a potential carbon monoxide problem? |
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purplepopple: @nicpel I'm always here for you if you need an Ear. :) |
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