Harkening
/ˈhɑːr.kən.ɪŋ/noun
Listening attentively or paying close attention.
Did you know?Harkening comes from Old English *heorcnian*, a verb meaning “to listen,” and it survives today in the older, almost incantatory form “hark,” which once functioned like a spoken summons.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*hauzrōną
“to hear”
Old English
OE
heorcnian
“to listen, hearken”
Middle English
ME
herkenen / harken
“to listen attentively; pay heed”
16th Century
English
hearken
“to listen or give attention”
Modern English
English
harkening
“listening attentively or paying heed”