To singe their ears

[driftwood]

One of my students asked me about what appears to be an idiom.

As I was gathering a response to singe their ears, a Ghanaian professor of English walked in.

source: All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes

What does "to singe their ears" mean?

[BobK]

That link doesn't have the phrase (except in the search box), but that expression usually means 'give them something disturbing/shocking/exciting to listen to'.

b

[driftwood]

That link doesn't have the phrase (except in the search box), but that expression usually means 'give them something disturbing/shocking/exciting to listen to'.

b

I am not sure why you could not find the phrase because It still works for me. Thank you for your input anyway.

[BobK]

Another possible meaning - less likely in the context - is 'shoot at them and just miss, so that the bullet passes close enough to singe their ears'.

(I blame this computer for the dysfunctional link. I hate it. )

b

[DRThomas]

At least in the USA, there is an old superstition that our ears "burn" if someone speaks poorly about us (criticizing us). A friend may tell you in jest, "I bet your ears were burning last night. Jack and I were talking about you."

I understand "to singe their ears" to mean he wanted to say bad things about them.