earphone
UK[ˈɪəfəʊn]US[ˈɪrfoʊn]
n
a small device that fits in or over the ear, used for listening to sound from a radio, music player, or other electronic device.
Morpheme Breakdown
ear
phone
ear
the organ of hearing
phone
sound, voice
Etymology
the word 'earphone' is a modern compound, formed in english by combining two ancient roots. the first element, 'ear', is a native english word from old english 'ēare', tracing back to proto-germanic and ultimately proto-indo-european roots related to hearing. the second element, 'phone', originates from the greek 'phōnē', meaning 'sound' or 'voice', which entered english via latin and french. the compound's logic is perfectly transparent, literally meaning a 'sound device for the ear', a descriptive term created in the late 19th or early 20th century to name the new personal listening technology.
Analysis
Structure: ear + phone
ear (old english, meaning 'the organ of hearing'); phone (greek, via french, meaning 'sound, voice')
Examples
she put on her earphones to listen to the podcast on the subway.
the earphone jack on my old phone is broken.
for better sound quality, he invested in a pair of high-fidelity earphones.