oír

to hear

verb oh-EER Less Common

Also means

to listen

Usage Note

Oír is an irregular verb — its present tense is oigo, oyes, oye… — and denotes passive hearing (sound reaching the ears), while escuchar implies active, attentive listening. The imperative ¡Oye! (hey!/listen!) is one of the most common attention-getters in conversational Spanish. Oír hablar de means 'to hear about.'

Examples

"Oigo música desde mi cuarto."

Natural Translation

I hear music from my room.

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