play by ear
/pleɪ baɪ ɪr/
Meaning
In a musical context, this means to perform a piece of music after simply listening to it, without using sheet music. In a casual, everyday context (usually phrased as 'play it by ear'), it means to deal with a situation spontaneously as it unfolds, rather than following a strict plan.
Examples
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She can play almost any song on the piano by ear after hearing it just once.
She can play almost any song on the piano by ear after hearing it just once.
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We don't have a strict itinerary for our trip; we're just going to play it by ear.
We don't have a strict itinerary for our trip; we're just going to play it by ear.
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Since we don't know how many people are coming, let's play it by ear.
Since we don't know how many people are coming, let's play it by ear.
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He never learned to read music, so he plays everything by ear.
He never learned to read music, so he plays everything by ear.
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Instead of booking a restaurant now, let's play it by ear and see what we feel like eating later.
Instead of booking a restaurant now, let's play it by ear and see what we feel like eating later.
Common Mistakes
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✗ I can play the guitar with my ear.
✓ I can play the guitar by ear.
The correct preposition is always 'by,' not 'with' or 'through' when talking about playing music without notes.
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✗ Let's play by ear tonight.
✓ Let's play it by ear tonight.
When using this idiom to mean 'decide plans as we go,' you must include the pronoun 'it' to make it grammatically natural.
Related Expressions
Practice
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I don't have sheet music for this song, so I'll have to play it ___.
💡 Without reading music, just listening.
Show answer
by ear
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We don't need a detailed plan for the weekend; let's just play it ___.
💡 Spontaneously decide as we go.
Show answer
by ear