telephone

First used by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876 to refer to the modern instrument, but previous devices had been given this name, which was borrowed from French téléphone. Ultimately from Ancient Greek τῆλε (têle, “afar”) + φωνή (phōnḗ, “voice, sound”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈ tɛl.ɪˌfəʊn/, /ˈ tɛl.əˌfəʊn/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈ tɛl.əˌfoʊn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: tel‧e‧phone

telephone (countable and uncountable, plural telephones)

1. (countable) A telecommunication device (originally mechanical, and now electronic) used for two-way talking with another person (now often shortened to phone).

   Synonyms: (slang) blower, phone, (slang) Ameche, (slang) dog and bone, (informal) horn, (slang) pipe; see also Thesaurus:phone

   Hyponym: cellphone

2. (countable, historical) The receiver of such a device.
3. (Canada, US, uncountable) The game of Chinese whispers.
   • 2013 October 27, Erik Adams, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “The PTA Disbands””, in The Onion AV Club‎:

     And since the spring of 1995, no game of telephone has ended without some Simpsons-loving smart-ass dropping “purple monkey dishwasher” into the chain.

4. (Canada, US, uncountable, figuratively) Chinese whispers; a situation in which an initial message has been distorted and misunderstood by being passed from person to person.
   • 2017 October 3, David Dobbs, “The Touch of Madness”, in Pacific Standard‎:

     In other words, Jones' career and life may have been derailed because a game of telephone went bad.

telephone (third-person singular simple present telephones, present participle telephoning, simple past and past participle telephoned)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To (attempt to) contact someone using a telephone.
   • 1913, Robert Barr, chapter 4, in Lord Stranleigh Abroad‎:

     “I came down like a wolf on the fold, didn’t I ?  Why didn’t I telephone ?  Strategy, my dear boy, strategy. This is a surprise attack, and I’d no wish that the garrison, forewarned, should escape. …”

   • 1944 July and August, “Top Link Drivers: XXI—Driver H. Blunt, L.N.E.R.”, in Railway Magazine, page 226:

     Having completed their task, Fireman Page telephoned from a lineside box to the next signal cabin, briefly reported the incident and said that, as no high explosive had dropped and the track was safe, they proposed proceeding "at caution".

   • 1961 November, “Talking of Trains: Derailment near Holmes Chapel”, in Trains Illustrated, page 652:

     The length ganger saw the train passing with the van derailed and promptly telephoned the Sandbach signalman, who restored his signals to danger, but not in time to stop the train before the final derailment occurred.

2. (transitive) To convey (a message) via telephone.
   • 2012, Robert Byron, Jan Morris, Europe in the Looking-Glass:

     David telephoned his apologies to his mother.

• call, drop a line, phone, ring
• See also Thesaurus:telephone

• phenetole