voicemail

noun

voice·​mail ˈvȯis-ˌmāl 

variants or less commonly voice mail or voice-mail

plural voicemails also voice mails or voice-mails

1

: an electronic communication system in which spoken messages are recorded or digitized and stored for later playback by the intended recipient

left a message on the company's voicemail

let the call go to voicemail

I tried calling him twice but I only got his voicemail.

Most vehicles are equipped with hands-free technology for cellphones. However, hands-free does not mean distraction-free. Silence the unit while driving or set up an auto-response that sends calls directly to voicemail.

—Kevin Martin

a voice-mail system

voice-mail messages

2

a

: messages received through a voicemail system

checking her voicemail

b

: a voicemail message

listening to a voicemail

Examples of voicemail in a Sentence

Just leave a message on my voice mail.

I left her a voice mail.

You have two new voice mails.

Recent Examples on the Web

Beyond voicemail, many tools do not required face-to-face communication, such as emails, faxes, text messages, carrier pigeons, etc. —Phil Kirschner, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024

Leave a voicemail or text your question to the Until Saturday phone: [phone]. —Chris Vannini, The Athletic, 25 Nov. 2024

Police soon learned that hours earlier, Zahau had checked her voicemail, on which was a message about the grave condition of Shacknai’s 6-year-old son Max, who was in the hospital after falling down a staircase in his father’s 27-bedroom historic mansion. —Christine Pelisek, People.com, 23 Nov. 2024

The update adds audio and video voicemail (à la Apple's FaceTime), AI backgrounds for video calls, HD video calls, background noise suppression, and hands-free calling and messaging via Apple’s Siri voice assistant. —Byandrew Nusca, Fortune, 21 Nov. 2024

Hanson made the threats in two voicemails left for Labat and Willis on Aug. 6, 2023, before Trump was indicted or his mug shot was taken. —Phil Helsel, NBC News, 30 Oct. 2024

To save the voicemail on your phone, select Add to New Quick Note or Save to Files. —Kim Komando, Fox News, 16 Oct. 2024

According to federal prosecutors, Arthur Ray Hanson II, 63, of Huntsville, Alabama, left voicemails laced with profanity and racial slurs for Willis and Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat. —Nina Turner, Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2024

Reynolds did not return multiple voicemail messages from the Statesman requesting an interview. —Ella McCarthy, Austin American-Statesman, 10 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1980, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

voice mail

noun

: an electronic communication system in which spoken messages are recorded for later playback to the intended recipient

also : such a message