The students listened attentively.

Meaning: The students were paying attention to the teacher's lesson.

Choice of Words: Listened is a verb that means to pay attention to something with the intention of understanding it. Attentively means with full attention and focus. Together, they mean that the students were paying close attention to what the teacher was saying.

Alternative Expressions

The students were all ears.

Meaning: This means the students were paying very close attention to what was being said. They were not distracted and were trying to understand what was being said.

Choice of Words: Students are people who go to school to learn. Were is a form of the verb "to be" that indicates a state of being. All ears is an idiom that means to be paying very close attention to something. When you put them together, "The students were all ears" means the students were paying very close attention to what was being said.

The students hung on every word.

Meaning: This means the students were paying very close attention to what was being said. They were not distracted and were trying to understand what was being said.

Choice of Words: Students are people who go to school to learn. Hung is a verb that means to be suspended or attached to something. Every word means each and every word that was being said. When you put them together, "The students hung on every word" means the students were paying very close attention to what was being said.

Related Expressions