auditory

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈɔː.dɪ.tə.ɹi/, /ˈɔː.dɪ.tɹi/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈɔː.dɪˌtoɹ.i/
  • (cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /ˈɑː.dɪˌtoɹ.i/
• Rhymes: -ɔːdɪtəɹi

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin audītōrius (“pertaining to a hearer or hearing”), from audiō (“to hear”) +‎ -tōrius (“-tory”, adjectival suffix).

Adjective

auditory (not comparable)

1. Of, or relating to hearing, or to the sense or organs of hearing.

   Synonyms: otic, acoustic, aural, auricular

Derived terms

• auditorian
• auditorily
• auditory artery
• auditory bone
• auditory canal
• auditory hallucination
• auditory integration training
• auditory meatus
• auditory nerve
• auditory processing disorder
• auditory tube
• cardioauditory
• external auditory canal
• external auditory meatus
• internal auditory artery
• internal auditory canal
• internal auditory meatus
• nonauditory
• oculoauditory
• postauditory
• preauditory
• subauditory
• visuoauditory

Related terms

• audio
• audio-
• auditorium

Translations

Translations

• Arabic: سَمْعِيّ (samʕiyy)
• Armenian: լսողական (hy) (lsoġakan)
• Bulgarian: слухов (sluhov)
• Catalan: auditiu
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 聽覺的 / 听觉的 (zh) (tīngjué de), 耳朵的 (zh) (ěrduo de)

• Czech: sluchový (cs) m
• Dutch: auditief (nl)
• Esperanto: aŭda
• French: auditoire (fr), auditif (fr)
• German: auditorisch, auditiv (de)
• Hebrew: קולי (he) class קול/קוליים (ḳoli)
• Italian: uditivo (it)
• Macedonian: слу́шен m (slúšen)
• Polish: audialny, słuchowy (pl), audytywny
• Portuguese: auditivo (pt), auditório (pt)
• Romanian: auditiv (ro)
• Russian: слухово́й (ru) (sluxovój)
• Scottish Gaelic: claisneach, claistinneach
• Slovak: sluchový
• Spanish: auditivo (es)

Etymology 2

From Latin audītōrium (“the place where something is heard; the assembled hearers”) +‎ -y.

Noun

auditory (plural auditories)

1. (archaic) Synonym of audience.
   • 1661, Robert Boyle, The Sceptical Chymist‎^[1], page 7:

     ...and because though these learned Gentlemen (sayes he, turning to his two friends) need not fear to discourse before any Auditory...

   • 1704, Daniel Defoe, “Preface”, in The Storm: Or, a Collection of the Most Remarkable Casualties and Disasters which Happen'd in the Late Dreadful Tempest, Both by Sea and Land‎^[2], J. Nutt:

     Preaching of Sermons is Speaking to a few of Mankind: Printing of Books is Talking to the whole World. The Parson Prescribes himself, and addresses to the particular Auditory with the Appellation of My Brethren; but he that Prints a Book, ought to Preface it with a Noverint Universi, Know all Men by these Presents. The proper Inference drawn from this remarkable Observation, is, That tho' he that Preaches from the Pulpit ought to be careful of his Words, that nothing pass from him but with an especial Sanction of Truth; yet he that Prints and Publishes to all the World, has a tenfold Obligation.

   • 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter IV, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 26:

     A general murmur of assent arose from his little auditory.

2. (archaic) Synonym of auditorium.

Related terms

• audition
• audio

Translations

audience — see audience

auditorium — see auditorium

References

• “auditory”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “auditory”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.