ears to the ground
Listening for developments
To keep one's ears to the ground is to stay alert to rumors, trends, or early signals of change.
The image is of listening for distant hoofbeats or footsteps through the earth: She keeps her ears to the ground for any shifts in company policy.
The phrase suggests attentiveness to unofficial channels—gossip, whispers, what people are really saying.
- listeningAttending to sound
- paying attentionDirecting focus toward something
- alertnessActive mental awareness
- be on the lookoutMaintain alert awareness
- vigilanceState of keen awareness
questioning · adapting · tuned in · attentiveness · keeping tabs · perception · eavesdropping · word on the street · anticipating · early warning · sensitivity · investigating · read between the lines · discernment · finger on the pulse · watchfulness · reading the room · intuition
ears to the groundoblivious
Lacking any awareness
head in the sand · out of touch · out of the loop · clueless · unaware
ears to the groundhead in the clouds
Absorbed in fantasy
complacent · incurious · indifferent · apathetic · disengaged
ears to the groundhead in the clouds
Absorbed in fantasy
disconnected · detached · aloof · withdrawn · disengaged
ears, eared, earless, earlobe, earring, ground, grounds, grounded, grounding