How to Wiggle Your Ears

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Wiggling your ears is a pretty rare skill due to the way humans have developed over time. Not everyone can do it, so to learn how, it’s important to first know what’s involved. With a better idea of what to expect, practicing how to do it is simply a matter of warming your whole face up and then concentrating on the muscles involved.

Part 1
Part 1 of 3:

Facial Muscles

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  1. You’re probably not pinning all your hopes and dreams on the ability to wiggle your ears, but just in case you are, brace yourself. Accept the possibility that you may not be physically capable. So don’t beat yourself up if nothing happens! Blame your ancestors instead. [1]
    • Wiggling your ears is what’s known as a “vestigial” trait. This means that, once upon a time, our ancestors were all able to do this quite easily. But since it doesn’t serve any real purpose, people just quit doing it, so over time humans lost the ability to do it so easily.
    • There’s some debate about how many people are still able to do it. Some believe that only a small percent are capable, while others believe that more people than that can relearn how to do it with practice.
  2. To truly master wiggling your ears, concentrate on not one, but three different muscles: the auricularis anterior, posterior, and superior. Don’t worry about the fancy names, though. Just focus on what each muscles does. [2]
    • The auricularis anterior lifts the ear both upward and toward your face.
    • The auricularis posterior draws it toward the back of your head.
    • The auricularis superiors only lifts it upward.
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  3. Some people have found that learning to control other specific muscles in your face makes learning how to wiggle your ears easier. So if there’s another trick that you find easier to do, start off with that instead. Then, once you learn how to manipulate one small cluster of muscles, switch back to your ears. You could try learning how to: [3]
    • Raise only one eyebrow.
    • Roll or dart just one eye at a time.
    • Flare your nostrils.
    • Shrink and dilate your pupils.
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Part 2
Part 2 of 3:

Warmups

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  1. Expect the muscles in your face to affect other neighboring ones whenever they contract or expand. Use this to really feel how your ears move in relation to other facial features. Try to isolate the muscles in and around your ears as you do.
    • As an experiment, raise your hand. Curl your fingers into a fist and squeeze. Most likely you’ll feel the muscles in your forearm tighten without you having to command them to.
  2. These may possibly have the strongest and most direct effect on your ears’ muscles. To see how, look to either side of you without turning your head or neck. Concentrate on your ears as you do. Chances are that you will feel one or both pull back. [4]
    • You’ll probably look a little crazy, but go with it and just go nuts with your eyes. Look in all directions, roll them around, or anything else that comes to mind. Feel how each action might tug your ears forward or push them back.
  3. If you can raise one eyebrow at a time, do it. If not, raise both. Then furrow your brow like you’re really mad. Alternate between the two and vary speeds. Keep your focus on your ears and how their muscles respond. [5]
  4. Grin like you’re the Joker, nice and wide. Lift your cheeks as you do. As before, concentrate on what your ears do in response so you can isolate the muscles there. [6]
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Part 3
Part 3 of 3:

Moving Your Ears

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  1. Don’t worry about mastering any one motion just yet. For now, see if you can move them at all. Once you’ve warmed your face up and isolated where your ears’ muscles are grouped, flex them any which way you can. Alternate between trying to move them up, backward, and forward. [7]
  2. If you have instant control over all three muscles, good for you! But if you find that you have far more control over just one or two, focus on those for now. Continue flexing and relaxing each one to strengthen both that muscle and the ones connected to it.
  3. As you gain more and more control over the first muscle that you focused on, move on to whichever one feels the most responsive. Practice that by itself at first, and then start alternating between that and the one from before. Then, when both start feeling more natural, move on to the last muscle and repeat.
  4. If you’re not quite sure that anything’s happening, don’t rely on feel alone. Set up a mirror so you can watch them in action. Put on a pair of glasses or shades so you can see and feel them move along with your ears.
  5. Remember that wiggling your ears is kind of a pointless skill, so expect those muscles to be pretty weak because you’ve never had any reason to engage them. Keep it up even if it doesn’t seem like much of anything is happening when you flex them. Give them time to strengthen so they can work up to the challenge. [8]
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Community Q&A

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  • Question
    Are there any benefits to wiggling your ears?
    Community Answer
    The fun of being able to show off your new skill is a benefit.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
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    Not Helpful 56 Helpful 160
  • Question
    This thing is impossible. Either that or my ears are lifeless. Any tips?
    Community Answer
    Concentrate on the muscle behind your chin (not your jaw). Don't just sit there and expect them to move, because they won't. Put your pointer finger right behind your ear. If you have to at first, move your eyebrows. Your ears might move as well. If you do this everyday, you will be able to do it without moving any other muscles except your ear ones.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
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    Not Helpful 36 Helpful 79
  • Question
    I can't find the muscle to wiggle my ears! How do you do that?
    Community Answer
    Unfortunately, some people just don't have the vestigial muscle that lets people wiggle their ears. Not everyone can do it.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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      Tips

      • Don't get too frustrated if it takes a while to learn. Ear wiggling is not a very useful skill, so there's no harm in not being able to do it!
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      Tips from our Readers

      The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
      • If you want to learn it, press your hand to your eyebrows and the other hand to your forehead. Then try wiggling because then, your eyebrows and forehead cant move anymore.
      • Try jumping and/or hopping up and down while shaking your head. This trick actually worked for my friends!
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      References

      1. ↑ http://www.livescience.com/33809-wiggle-ears.html
      2. ↑ http://www.livescience.com/33809-wiggle-ears.html
      3. ↑ http://www.livescience.com/33809-wiggle-ears.html
      4. ↑ http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/health/HealthRepublish_1647353.htm
      5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqBNlYVfwg
      6. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqBNlYVfwg
      7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqBNlYVfwg
      8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqBNlYVfwg

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      If you want to wiggle your ears, start by training your muscles in your face, such as by darting your eyes from side to side, so you have better control over your muscle movements. Next, grin and lift your cheeks at the same time, while focusing on what your ears do so you can isolate the muscles. When your muscles are warmed up, stand in front of a mirror so you can watch your own movements. Then, try to move your ears backwards, forwards, or upwards. If you're struggling to control one movement, focus on it before moving on to the others. To find out why flaring your nostrils or rolling an eye can help you learn to wiggle your ears, read on!

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