Meanings
nounactive listening (uncountable)
- uncountableThe process of attending carefully to what a speaker is saying, involving such techniques as accurately paraphrasing the speaker's remarks.
Active listening involves all of the senses, not just hearing.
1999, Deborah Antai-Otong, “Active listening at Work”, in The American Journal of Nursing, volume 99, number 2, page 24L
Translations
Finnish aktiivinen kuuntelu
- aktiivinen kuunteluattending carefully to a speaker
French écoute active
- écoute activeattending carefully to a speaker
German Aktives Zuhören
- Aktives Zuhörenattending carefully to a speaker
Italian ascolto attivo
- ascolto attivoattending carefully to a speaker
Russian акти́вное слу́шание
- акти́вное слу́шание (aktívnoje slúšanije)attending carefully to a speaker
Spanish escucha activa
- escucha activaattending carefully to a speaker
Turkish aktif dinleme
- aktif dinlemeattending carefully to a speaker
Cite this entry
APA
active listening. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/active%20listening
MLA
“active listening.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/active%20listening. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “active listening,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/active%20listening.
Source: active listening on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.