Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. the ear.

1845		Blackburn Standard 10 Dec. 1/5: I am not prepared to vindicate [...] a bullet [...] through the ear-hole of a deaf old lady.
1865		Leaves from Diary of Celebrated Burglar 135/1: Now, lads, let wun on yez goa tu that cornir o’ t’ ‘crib,’ an’ tothir wun tu t’ tuthir cornir, an’ keep thau ear-’oles opin.
1869		Royal Cornwall Gaz. 20 May 7/5: Martson threatened to ‘hit him a smack in the ear-hole if he didn’t’.
1880		Shields Dly Gaz. 28 Sept. 4/1: There was [...] a bruise just in front of the right ear-hole through which the bullet had passed.
1891		Grantham Jrnl 19 Sept. 7/3: He hit me in the earhole first and made me deaf.
1900		Bulletin (Sydney) 19 May 3/2: And you’ve learnt to sleep so soundly that the firin’ of a gun / At your ‘ear-hole’ wouldn’t rob you of your rest.
1913		Chelmsford Chron. 14 Feb. 2/7: he was agravated because earlier in the evening the constable had ‘clipped him in the earhole’.
1925		Burnley Exp. 22 Aug. 11/2: Didn’t you see this man hit me under the ear-hole?
1937		J. Curtis There Ain’t No Justice 165: Bash—something’s hit you on the earhole.
1945		Lichfield Mercury 27 July 3/4: Defendant came into his house [and] putting his fist up, said, ‘I will put this under your — earhole’.
1958		F. Norman Bang To Rights n.p.: The clerk of the court jumped up and had a little wisper in the judge’s earhole.
1989		M. Amis London Fields 442: ‘That was an earhole.’ ‘You can’t fracture an ear, Keith.’.
1995		J. Cameron Vinnie Got Blown Away 159: ‘Heard you were organising some gig up the Asian Centre?’ ‘Your earholes working overtime Andy?’.
2000		J.J. Connolly Layer Cake 89: I can see all the little ear’oles tweaking to hear better.

2. a toady, a sycophant.

2003

Brummagem Dict. 🌐 earhole n. a creep; a brown-nose; someone who sucks up to a teacher or a boss.

3. an act of listening, of eavesdropping.

1962

F. Norman Guntz 42: I [...] had a quick butchers around the room to make sure no one was having an earhole.