hearken back

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hearken back

/ˌhɑːk(ə)n ˈbæk/ UK
/ˌhɑɹkən ˈbæk/ US

Where it comes from

From hearken + back, possibly an erroneous substitution of hearken (“to hear (something) with attention; to have regard to (something); to listen; to attend or give heed to what is uttered; to hear with attention, compliance, or obedience”) for hark: see the usage note.

verb hearkens back · hearkening back · hearkened back · harken back

proscribed, sometimes Synonym of hark back (“to allude, return, or revert (to a subject previously mentioned, etc.); also, to evoke, or long or pine for (a past era or event)”). From the opening shots of the anonymous young Winterfell boy rushing to catch a glimpse of Jon Snow and Queen Daenerys Targaryen, hearkening back to those moments of the very first episode in which Arya rushed to do the same with an approaching King Robert Baratheon, the series is calling back to it
Similar: hark back

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MLA

"hearken back." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/hearken%20back. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

hearken back. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/hearken%20back

Chicago

"hearken back." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/hearken%20back.

BibTeX

@misc{hearken_back_2026,
  title = {hearken back},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/hearken%20back},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}