telephone
[noun]
Synonyms:
- phone, handset, line
[verb]
Synonyms:
- call, dial, phone, ring (chiefly Brit.)

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Related Idioms: get (one) on the horn, give (one) a buzz (or ring)

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English Thesaurus: phone, mobile phone, cell phone, voice mail, text message, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. tel‧e‧phone¹ S1 W2 /ˈteləfəʊn, ˈtelɪfəʊn $ -foʊn/ noun
[Date: 1800-1900; Origin: tele- + Greek phone 'sound, voice']

1. the telephone the system of communication that you use to have a conversation with someone in another place Synonym : phone
by telephone
Reservations can be made by telephone.
on the telephone
I’ve never met him, but I’ve spoken to him on the telephone.
over the telephone
I read the names out to him over the telephone.
down the telephone British English:
He shouted at me down the telephone.

REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say phone rather than telephone:
She’s been on the phone all evening.

2. [countable] the piece of equipment that you use when you are talking to someone by telephone Synonym : phone:
The telephone rang just as I was leaving.
She picked up the telephone and dialled a number.
I said goodbye and put down the telephone.

3. be on the telephone
a) to be talking to someone, using the telephone:
I was on the telephone when he came in.
b) to have a telephone in your home, office etc

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. telephone² verb [intransitive and transitive]
British English formal to talk to someone by telephone Synonym : phone, call:
Sammy telephoned to say that he would be late.
I’ll telephone you later.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

telephone
noun
ADJ. pay, public | office, private The office telephones were all out of order.
cellular, cordless, mobile, portable | radio, satellite
VERB + TELEPHONE use Can I use your telephone?
be on Don't pester me now?I'm on the telephone. We're not on the telephone, so you'll have to come round to the house.
answer, get (informal), pick up Hang on?I'll just get the telephone.
hang up, put down She put down the telephone and burst into tears.
leave/take off the hook I've been trying to phone him all day?he must have left his telephone off the hook.
be wanted on The waiter came to tell me I was wanted on the telephone.
call sb to He was called to the telephone just as he was leaving.
bug, tap | connect, install | disconnect
TELEPHONE + VERB ring, shrill The telephone was ringing furiously. The telephone shrilled into the silence.
be off the hook
TELEPHONE + NOUN number | book, directory | bill | call, message | conversation, enquiry, interview, query, survey | contact She is in telephone contact with headquarters.
helpline, hotline, support The charity has set up a 24-hour telephone helpline.
company | banking, marketing, service | charges | cord, headset, receiver | cable, exchange, line, network, switchboard, system, wire | box, kiosk | voice A good telephone voice can do much to improve the temper of irate callers.
PREP. by ~ Can I get in touch by telephone?
on the ~ She sounded very distant on the telephone.
over the ~ I don't want to talk about this over the telephone.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

telephone

a telephone rings
The telephone rang, but Tom didn’t answer it.
answer the telephone
When I called the house, Mike answered the telephone.
talk on the telephone
He was talking on the telephone when the doorbell rang.
use the telephone
May I use your telephone?
pick up the telephone
As soon as she got home, she picked up the telephone and dialled his number.
put down the telephone
Before he could respond, she’d put down the telephone.
call somebody on the telephone
Her son doesn’t even call her on the telephone.
a telephone call
She got a telephone call from Joe last night.
a telephone conversation
We had a long telephone conversation.
a telephone line
They didn’t even have a telephone line.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

telephone
verb
See PHONE (phone)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

phone (also telephone formal):
My wife was talking to someone on the phone.
What's your home phone number?
The nearest telephone was in the school secretary's office.
mobile phone British English (also mobile informal) a telephone that you can carry with you, that works by using a network of radio stations to pass on signals:
Even children as young as eight have mobile phones.
She always has her mobile switched off.
cell phone American English (also cell informal) a mobile phone:
You can reach me on my cell phone.
voice mail a system that records messages so that you can listen to them on your phone:
Let me check my voice mail.
text message (also text, SMS) a message from someone that you can read on your mobile phone:
I got a text from Paul.
landline a telephone that uses wires – used when comparing this with a mobile phone:
Calls cost 25p from a landline, more from a mobile phone.
receiver the part of a telephone that you pick up to listen and talk:
She put down the receiver and started crying.
call to phone someone. Call is used in both British and American English:
One of the neighbors called the police.
Call me later.
ring British English spoken to phone someone. Ring is more informal than phone or call:
I can ring her at the office tomorrow.
give somebody a call (also give somebody a ring) spoken to phone someone:
If you ever come to Seattle, give me a call.
I’ll give the hospital a ring and see how he is.
telephone formal to phone someone:
Angry listeners telephoned the BBC to complain.
Skype /skaɪp/ trademark to make a telephone call using special software that allows you to make calls over the Internet:
I Skyped her last night and we spoke for hours.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

phone to speak to someone by telephone. Phone is more common in British English than American English:
I’ll phone you tomorrow.
call to phone someone. Call is used in both British and American English:
One of the neighbors called the police.
Call me later.
ring British English spoken to phone someone. Ring is more informal than phone or call:
I can ring her at the office tomorrow.
give somebody a call (also give somebody a ring) spoken to phone someone:
If you ever come to Seattle, give me a call.
I’ll give the hospital a ring and see how he is.
telephone formal to phone someone:
Angry listeners telephoned the BBC to complain.
Skype /skaɪp/ trademark to make a telephone call using special software that allows you to make calls over the Internet:
I Skyped her last night and we spoke for hours.
make a call
He made a few calls and then went out.
get/have a call (also receive a call formal)
At 11 in the evening we got a call from the police.
there is/was a call
There was a phone call for you.
answer a call
We’re sorry that we cannot answer your call right now.
take a call (=answer one)
Monica took the call upstairs.
return sb’s call (=call someone after they have tried to call you)
I left a message for her but she didn’t return my call.
expect a call
She’s expecting a phone call from Matt.
transfer a call (=connect one to another person’s phone)
The call was transferred to his secretary.
put through a call (=transfer or make one)
She asked the switchboard to put the call through.
a phone/telephone call
I had a phone call from Barbara in Australia.
a quick call
This is just a quick call to make sure you’re OK.
a local call
Local calls are free at weekends.
a long-distance call
I’d like to make a long-distance call.
an international call
a collect call American English (=one paid for by the person who receives it)
Can I make a collect call to Florida, please?
incoming/outgoing calls (=coming into or going out of a place)
You have to dial 9 first to make an outgoing call.
an emergency call (=to the police, fire service, or ambulance service)
The police normally respond immediately to an emergency call.
a hoax call (=one intended to trick someone)
They received a hoax call warning of a bomb in the building.
an anonymous call (=in which the caller does not give their name)
The £10,000 demand was made in an anonymous call to his home.
a crank call (=made by someone you do not know, as a joke or to annoy you)
The heavy breathing sounded like a crank call.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲