HEARKENING
Verb
hearkening
present participle of hearken
Noun
hearkening (plural hearkenings)
The act of one who hearkens or listens.
Source: Wiktionary
HEARKEN
Heark"en, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Hearkened; p. pr. & vb. n. Hearkening.]
Etym: [OE. hercnen, hercnien, AS. hercnian, heorcnian, fr. hiéran, h,
to hear; akin to OD. harcken, horcken, LG. harken, horken, G.
horchen. See Hear, and cf. Hark..]
1. To listen; to lend the ear; to attend to what is uttered; to give
heed; to hear, in order to obey or comply.
The Furies hearken, and their snakes uncurl. Dryden.
Hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I
teach you. Deut. iv. 1.
2. To inquire; to seek information. [Obs.] "Hearken after their
offense." Shak.
Syn.
– To attend; listen; hear; heed. See Attend, v. i.
Heark"en, v. t.
1. To hear by listening. [Archaic]
[She] hearkened now and then Some little whispering and soft groaning
sound. Spenser.
2. To give heed to; to hear attentively. [Archaic]
The King of Naples . . . hearkens my brother's suit. Shak.
To hearken out, to search out. [Obs.]
If you find none, you must hearken out a vein and buy. B. Johnson.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition