English Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions 

Body Idioms:  Ears
from: 'all ears'   to:  'play it by ear'

• all ears
  • To say that you are all ears means that you are listening very attentively.
    "Of course I want to know - I'm all ears!"
    
    
• fall on deaf ears
  • If something such as a suggestion or a request falls on deaf ears, it is ignored.
    "I told Mark not to take any risks, but my advice fell on deaf ears."
    
    
• go in one ear and come out the other
  • To say that information goes in one ear and comes out the other means that it is immediately forgotten or ignored.
    "I keep telling him about the risks but it goes in one ear and out the other. He never listens!"
    
    
• grin from ear to ear
  • If somebody is grinning from ear to ear, they look very satisfied and happy.
    "When we saw Paul grinning from ear to ear, we knew he had passed the exam."
    
    
• keep your ear to the ground
  • If you keep your ear to the ground, you make sure that you are aware of all that is happening and being said.
    "We don't know what has been decided, but Jack is keeping his ear to the ground!"
    
    
• lend an ear
  • If you lend an ear to someone, you listen carefully and sympathetically.
    "The best person to talk to is Jenny. She's always ready to lend an ear."
    
    
• make one's ears burn
  • If something makes your ears burn, you are embarrassed by what you hear, especially if the conversation is about you.
    "The comments I overheard made my ears burn."
    
    
• music to your ears
  • If something is music to your ears, the information that you receive makes you feel very happy.
    "His compliments were music to my ear."
    
    
• prick up your ears
  • If you prick up your ears, you suddenly pay attention to what is being said.
    "The children pricked up their ears when they heard the word 'ice-cream'."
    
    
• turn a deaf ear
  • If you turn a deaf ear to something, you refuse to listen.
    "Sam turned a deaf ear to his wife's advice and went off in the rain without an umbrella."
    
    
• play it by ear
  • To play it by ear means to improvise or act without preparation, according to the demands of the situation.
    (Music: to play by remembering the tune, without printed music.)
    "It's hard to know how the situation will develop. Let's just play it by ear."