verb HSK 2
Traditional 聽見
tīng jiàn
to hear · to catch (sound)

Meaning

听见 means to hear or perceive sound with your ears. It emphasizes the result of hearing—that you actually heard something. The verb combines 听 (to listen) with the resultative complement 见, indicating successful perception.

Usage

Native speakers use 听见 when they want to emphasize that they successfully heard something, as opposed to just listening (听). It's commonly used in questions like '你听见了吗?' (Did you hear that?) and negative statements like '我没听见' (I didn't hear). Often interchangeable with 听到 in everyday speech.

Examples

  1. 01
    听见有人敲门了吗?
    tīng jiàn yǒu rén qiāo mén le ma?
    Did you hear someone knocking on the door?
  2. 02
    她说话声音太小,我没听见
    shuō huà shēng yīn tài xiǎo, méi tīng jiàn.
    She spoke too softly; I didn't hear her.

Characters

Common collocations

  • 听见声音
    tīng jiàn shēng yīn
    to hear a sound
  • 听见
    méi tīng jiàn
    didn't hear
  • 听得见
    tīng de jiàn
    can hear, audible
  • 听不见
    tīng bu jiàn
    cannot hear, inaudible

Origin

听见 combines the verb 听 (listen) with 见 (see/perceive) as a resultative complement. The 见 here indicates successful perception, similar to how it means 'to see' visually—here it means 'to perceive aurally.'

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