I couldn't believe my eyes vs I couldn't believe my ears

Both phrases are correct, but they convey slightly different meanings. 'I couldn't believe my eyes' is used when someone sees something surprising or unbelievable, while 'I couldn't believe my ears' is used when someone hears something surprising or unbelievable.

Last updated: March 25, 2024

I couldn't believe my eyes

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to express disbelief upon seeing something surprising or unbelievable.

This phrase is used to convey that something seen is so surprising or unbelievable that the person finds it hard to believe what they are seeing.

Examples:

When I saw the beautiful sunset, I couldn't believe my eyes.
I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw my favorite celebrity at the grocery store.
The magician's trick was so amazing that I couldn't believe my eyes.
The view from the top of the mountain was so breathtaking, I couldn't believe my eyes.
I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the size of the fish my friend caught.

Show examples from the web [+]

I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw that.
I couldn't believe my eyes.
The tape was delivered anonymously to me, and I have to say, the first time I saw it, David, I couldn't believe my eyes.
It's incredible, because I couldn't believe my eyes when I once just happened to bump into him.
I couldn't believe my eyes, the first guy was carrying his intestines around in his hand.
When I saw "Riley Neal" in the prep-report, I couldn't believe my eyes.
I couldn't believe my eyes, when I saw your porcelain on the market.
I was skeptical, but when I... saw his code I couldn't believe my eyes, so I decided to help him.
It came up and went under so mysteriously and silently... that I couldn't believe my eyes.
I couldn't believe my eyes, so I decided to help him.
When you showed me the photograph of Gordon Way in the newspaper, I couldn't believe my eyes.
I couldn't believe my eyes. Matsuko Kawajiri-san!
I knew I couldn't believe my eyes, so there were seven possible reasons, the most possible being narcotics.
I just couldn't believe my eyes.
I can't believe my eyes.
I can't believe my eyes.
I still don't believe my eyes.
I see this demonstration, but I can't believe my eyes.
Danny! I can't believe my eyes.
Gisani couldn't believe his eyes.

Alternatives:

I couldn't believe what I was seeing
I was in disbelief at what I saw
I couldn't trust my own eyes
I was astonished by what I saw
I was amazed by what I saw

I couldn't believe my ears

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to express disbelief upon hearing something surprising or unbelievable.

This phrase is used to convey that something heard is so surprising or unbelievable that the person finds it hard to believe what they are hearing.

Examples:

When she told me she won the lottery, I couldn't believe my ears.
I couldn't believe my ears when I heard the news about the accident.
The announcement was so shocking that I couldn't believe my ears.
I couldn't believe my ears when I heard my favorite band was coming to town.
The story he told was so unbelievable, I couldn't believe my ears.

Show examples from the web [+]

You know, when Alex told me that you had gone legit, I just couldn't believe my ears.
Of course I remember, it's just that I couldn't quite believe my ears, Mrs...
I can't believe my ears.
I could not believe my ears.
I can scarcely believe my ears.
l can't believe my ears or my eyes.
I can hardly believe my ears.
I'm puzzled, too. I can scarcely believe my ears.
Then it happens all at once. I cannot believe my ears about what I am hearing.
I could not believe my ears when influential socialist and liberal fellow Members demanded that the EU launch so-called serious infringement proceedings - the most severe of available sanctions - against Hungary, the holder of the current EU Presidency.
I couldn't believe my own readings.
If I had not been able to believe my ears today, I would not be able to believe my eyes if that happened tomorrow.
'I couldn't believe my therapist was here.
I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw that.
I couldn't believe my eyes.
I couldn't believe my eyes, so I decided to help him.
Well, I mean, I couldn't believe my luck.
I couldn't believe my eyes, when I saw your porcelain on the market.
When you showed me the photograph of Gordon Way in the newspaper, I couldn't believe my eyes.
I was skeptical, but when I... saw his code I couldn't believe my eyes, so I decided to help him.

Alternatives:

I couldn't believe what I was hearing
I was in disbelief at what I heard
I couldn't trust my own ears
I was astonished by what I heard
I was amazed by what I heard

What Our Customers Are Saying

Our customers love us! We have an average rating of 4.79 stars based on 283,125 votes.
Also check out our 2,100+ reviews on TrustPilot (4.9).

"Thank you!"
Sachi Nakama July 2024
"I have literally been through chat, PI, claude, bard and bing and I got conflicting answers! Thank you! Human intelligence reigns!"
Retha July 2024
"Faster than AI"
CYNTHIA December 2023
"This was very helpful and I personally think this site is the best."
Kaden October 2023
"It was extremely thorough and very helpful!"
imperialelisa October 2023
"7 years without any disappointment. Always 100% satisfied. You guys are the best in the world at what you do. Thank you so much :)"
Zubair Alam October 2023
"In a world of text messages and online communication, this is great to have as a live tool. Thank you."
Selena October 2023
"Without textranch I would be stuck!"
宏祐 October 2023
"Accuracy and fast response. Personal comments from editor. Thank you."
Clh September 2023
"I wasn't aware of this service, it's fascinating and more reliable than standard IA tools available on the internet"
Arturo September 2023
"The fact that you can get reliable fast feedback on your texts."
Vinicius Antonio August 2023
"you guys are better than grammarly i'm being honest here"
ordinary July 2023
"OMG! This is really good than any other text correction tools I've used so far. Highly recommend this."
Vehan July 2023
"Very fast and accurate. thank you."
mojtaba July 2023
"I love this app because it's help to writing skills all of students ♥️"
Tarisini July 2023
"This was exactly the mistake I was looking for, the wording dind´t sound right at first. Better than grammarly!"
Ente July 2023
"The immediate help that I received was reassuring and very satisfactory. Thanks."
priiiyanshuu July 2023
"this helps A LOT for my studies."
kathnunez02 June 2023
"Woow!! I would never have expected such precision! Thank you soooo much!!"
Berta June 2023
"Real Time Editor and not AI. Many Thanks."
Priya June 2023
"The very first thing excites me about Textranch is how much your editors care."
sepideh June 2023
"The fact that texts are checked by human editors rather than by AI, etc. I appreciate this!"
Анна June 2023
"Feel welcome, immediate response, high quality feedback"
martin.roy June 2023
"This is the best app that I have ever seen"
Burulai May 2023

I couldn't believe my eyes vs I couldn't believe my ears