In samāʿ the teacher himself utters the hadith and the pupil hears him. “Samiʿtu” (“I heard”) and “ḥaddathanī” (“he narrated to me”) give particularly explicit indications of this event. They should represent actual direct listening.
Example: A pupil says, “I heard the teacher mention this report.” He claims a listening event. If he only received written permission, using “samiʿtu” would falsely attribute direct audition to that teacher.
The singular/plural distinction between “ḥaddathanī” and “ḥaddathanā” may also indicate individual or group transmission. A group session does not automatically establish that every listener attended or retained the report equally well.