Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
noun
A person who cannot hear clearly or who fails to pay attention to what is said.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: UK, dated, derogatory, informal
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
The origin of the term is in the wool and cotton mills of Northern England where the noise of the machinery and build-up of cotton dust made it difficult to hear people speaking. The earliest example in print is "I wish you'd listen. Have you got cloth ears?" from Carnival, a novel by Compton Mackenzie (1912).
