telephone

1 of 2

noun

tele·​phone ˈte-lə-ˌfōn 

plural telephones

: a device by which sound (such as speech) is converted into electrical impulses and transmitted (as by wire or radio waves) to one or more specific receivers (see receiver sense d(1)) : phone

The telephone rang.

We spoke by telephone.

a telephone call

: such as

a

: a telephone that operates by means of a landline

… an old-fashioned corded telephone. The kind that plugs right into the wall phone jack.

—Eliot Kleinberg

b

: cell phone

In a day when most of us have a telephone in our back pocket … the need for a pay phone no longer exists.

—Paul Connor

telephone

2 of 2

verb

telephoned; telephoning

transitive verb

1

: to speak to or attempt to reach by telephone

2

: to send by telephone

intransitive verb

: to communicate by telephone

telephoner noun

Synonyms

Verb

• call
• dial
• phone
• ring (up) [chiefly British]

Examples of telephone in a Sentence

Noun

I just have to make a quick telephone call before we leave.

You can order the cake over the telephone.

The telephone has been ringing all morning!

She picked up the telephone and dialed the number.

He slammed down the telephone.

They hired someone to answer the telephones.

All our telephones are cordless.

I left the telephone off the hook.

Verb

He telephoned me to say that he was going to be late.

He telephoned to say that he was going to be late.

You never write or telephone.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Dixons have since struck up a telephone relationship with Blayne, who lives in another state. —Keith Sharon, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024

It was conducted at the end of October by Selzer’s firm, called Selzer & Co., and was based on telephone interviews with 808 Iowa likely voters. —Brian Stelter, CNN, 17 Dec. 2024

Verb

Not long after Ryan Holdren returned home one evening in March 2021 from his job at Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy, the school’s secretary telephoned to tell him that one of their students was on TV. —Johnny Dodd, People.com, 21 Dec. 2024

Visitors can play with a tin can telephone or connect to the museum’s general store on a working candlestick phone. —Anne Gelhaus, The Mercury News, 24 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1864, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1877, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing telephone

• cellular telephone
• down the telephone
• French telephone
• on the telephone
• screen one's (telephone/phone) calls
• telephone book
• telephone booth
• telephone box
• telephone directory
• telephone number
• telephone pole
• telephone tag
• wireless telephone

Kids Definition

telephone

1 of 2 noun

tele·​phone ˈtel-ə-ˌfōn 

: any of several devices for transmitting and receiving sounds over long distances by electricity

telephone

2 of 2 verb

telephoned; telephoning

1

: to communicate by telephone

2

: to send by telephone

3

: to speak to by telephone