listen up

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listen up

Where it comes from

From listen + up. First use appears c. 1933, although the exact date of its first use is uncertain. See cite below.

verb listens up · listening up · listened up

idiomatic, imperative, informal, often To listen closely; to pay attention. I'm only gonna say this once, so you really need to listen up.
Similar: give ear, lend an ear, hear ye

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verb Translations

Español	escuchar

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MLA

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

APA

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

Chicago

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

BibTeX

@misc{listen_up_2026,
  title = {listen up},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/listen%20up},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}