Where does “overhear” come from?

Overhear comes from Middle English overheren, from Old English oferhīeran, meaning to hear over or hear beyond.

overhear (English): To hear something that was not meant for one's...

Definitions

  1. To hear something that was not meant for one's...

Ancestry of “overhear”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishoverheren—
2Old Englishoferhīeranto overhear, hear, disobey, disregard, neglect

Words derived from “overhear”

Every word from Old English oferhīeran →Every word from Middle English overheren →