calling card
Americannoun
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Also called card, visiting card. a small card with the name and often the address of a person or of a couple, for presenting when making a business or social call, for enclosing in gifts, etc.
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Informal. any mark, sign, trace, characteristic, or the like by which someone or something can be recognized.
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Also called phone card. a prepaid card or charge card that can be used to make a telephone call at home or away from home.
noun
Etymology
Origin of calling card
An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
An enameled brooch and tortoiseshell calling card case belonging to Leah.
From Literature
His calling card: He added a dose of mirth to the sober ministerings of a profession not known for its sense of humor or rhetorical skills.
Glenn’s raw emotion and her triple axel are her calling cards while trying to stand out in the wide-open women’s field.
From Los Angeles Times
Volatility has been silver’s calling card in recent months but even by recent standards the last week has been a roller-coaster ride.
From MarketWatch
And when a group of OpenAI employees formed Anthropic in 2021, attempting to make AI safety the new company’s calling card, she went with them.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
