overhears

present tense third-person singular of overhear
as in hears
to listen to (another in private conversation) it's not polite to try to overhear intimate friends sharing confidences

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of overhears Rosa is kind and helpful, but Kaylee worries about disappointing Fraser, who overhears her ask for Rosa’s help. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2026 One morning at school, Frida spies bruises on Elia’s back and overhears her and Emmanuel talking about having been disciplined by their parents. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2026 The founder who overhears the right conversation wasn’t looking for it. — Jennifer Hoffmann, Forbes.com, 6 Oct. 2026 At one point, Piker overhears his brother telling me about his old job as an aerospace engineer at Boeing. — Josh Eells, Rolling Stone, 9 Aug. 2026 Season 3 picks up after her boyfriend Alex Walter (Ashby Gentry) overhears Jackie and his brother Cole Walter (Noah LaLonde) confess their feelings for each other. — Kelly Allen, PEOPLE, 6 Aug. 2026 Mami overhears our conversation and gives us a crisp hundred-peso note, plasticky and purple. — Joseph Trinidad, Longreads, 16 June 2026 When Dickens overhears his son Baby chatting with Andersen during storytime, and the child’s painful stutter is gone, Dickens is grateful, at least temporarily, for Andersen’s presence. — Stuart Miller, Oc Register, 10 June 2026 Rebekah overhears this plan and urges Jacob to disguise himself as Esau. — Charles Preston, Encyclopedia Britannica, 13 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overhears
Verb
  • Print out every word a child hears on the way to mastering language and the stack stands about as tall as a house.
    — Charles Yeomans, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Every audience hears about the tweets from Michigan’s William Lawrence, condemning the nuclear family, and New York’s Darializa Avila Chevalier, about how July 4 should be about the liberation of Palestine and Puerto Rico.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • One morning at school, Frida spies bruises on Elia’s back and overhears her and Emmanuel talking about having been disciplined by their parents.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Late one night, Clark spies what appears to be a sliver of light coming through a crack in the wall of the store’s basement.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 14 June 2026
Verb
  • What’s more, the pack also features a wireless battery management system that monitors voltage and temperature at individual cell groups.
    — Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Burnette says Kodiak also monitors for threats and maintains an incident response process.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Overhears.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overhears. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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