phone
1 Americannoun
-
a portable electronic telephone device, as a cell phone, mobile phone, or smartphone.
verb (used with object)
-
to speak to or summon (a person) by telephone.
-
to send (a message) by telephone.
verb (used without object)
noun
combining form
-
(forming nouns) indicating voice, sound, or a device giving off sound
microphone
telephone
-
(forming nouns and adjectives) (a person) speaking a particular language
Francophone
noun
noun
Other Word Forms
- -phonic combining form
- phonal adjective
Etymology
Origin of phone1
First recorded in 1880–85; by shortening
Origin of phone2
First recorded in 1865–70, phone is from the Greek word phōnḗ voice
Origin of -phone3
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.
He and his wife, Jacqueline Arellano, were able to use the phone list to notify the person’s family in Arizona about where their missing loved one fell.
From Los Angeles Times
As we spoke by phone, Ceballos peeked into his waiting room and said three patients were from the U.S.
From Los Angeles Times
Huitzilin exited his vehicle holding up his own camera phone alongside his wife, and the two groups got into a heated exchange, according to video played in court.
From Los Angeles Times
But in his ruling Wednesday, Klausner ruled Seitz and his attorneys had not presented “factual allegations as to why this phone call would affect Plaintiff.”
From Los Angeles Times
Sarandos was preparing for a separate meeting with White House officials that day when he got a phone call.
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.
