phone
phone — noun
1. equipment for speaking to somebody far away by voice.
equipment for speaking to somebody far away by voice.
Maya left her phone on the kitchen table before school.
The nurse answered the phone while the doctor washed his hands.
answer the phone
Our hotel room phone rang just after midnight.
Ken uses his phone to call his grandmother in Tainan.
use a phone to call somebody
- answer the phone
- phone rings
- phone on the table
- hotel room phone
- telephone
the fuller word; slightly more formal or old-fashioned in some contexts
- mobile
common in British English for a portable phone only
- cell phone
common in American English for a portable phone only
Grammar Patterns
answer the phone
use a phone to call somebody
phone + rings
Usage Note
Covers both landlines and mobile devices unless the context makes one kind clear.
Common Mistakes
2. contact with someone through a phone, especially in fixed phrases.
contact with someone through a phone, especially in fixed phrases.
Lena sounded calm on the phone, but her hands were shaking.
on the phone
First City Bank will not change your address over the phone.
over the phone
After two hours on the phone, Omar finally reached the airline desk.
Mr. Wu handles most flower orders by phone, not by email.
by phone
- on the phone
- by phone
- over the phone
- hours on the phone
- telephone contact
a fuller and more formal phrase
- call contact
less idiomatic and used mainly when contrasting methods of contact
- phone communication
broader and more formal, often in business writing
Grammar Patterns
on the phone
by phone
over the phone
Usage Note
Usually follows a preposition such as on, by, or over. Distinguish from noun/1, which names the device itself.
Common Mistakes
3. used after be to say a place has a landline connection.
used after be to say a place has a landline connection.
The mountain lodge is not on the phone during winter storms.
be on the phone = have landline service
When the bakery opened in 1962, it was not yet on the phone.
Only three houses in the village were on the phone then.
The old clinic went on the phone in 1974.
go on the phone
- not on the phone
- be on the phone
- go on the phone
- houses on the phone
- have a landline
the clearest everyday paraphrase
- have phone service
broader and slightly more modern in tone
- be connected
shorter, but it can refer to utilities other than telephone service
Grammar Patterns
be on the phone
go on the phone
not on the phone
Usage Note
This is an older landline expression about whether a building has telephone service. Distinguish from noun/2, where on the phone means using the phone to talk.
Common Mistakes
4. time spent using a mobile for messages, games, or online tasks.
time spent using a mobile for messages, games, or online tasks.
Suri was on her phone through the whole bus ride.
be on your phone
During dinner, both boys stayed on their phones under the table.
The guard asked visitors not to be on their phones near the painting.
be on their phones
Even in line for coffee, Tina was still on her phone.
- be on your phone
- stay on your phone
- on their phones
- still on her phone
- use your phone
the plain everyday paraphrase
- scroll
more specific, usually about moving through content on a screen
- text
narrower, only about sending messages
Grammar Patterns
be on your phone
stay on your phone
on their phones
Usage Note
Usually appears with be + on + a possessive. Unlike noun/2, the focus is not a voice call but general mobile use.
Common Mistakes
5. a single spoken sound studied in phonetics, not the phoneme category of a langua
a single spoken sound studied in phonetics, not the phoneme category of a language.
In today's phonetics class, Dr. Lin wrote each phone between square brackets.
phone in square brackets
In Dr. Chen's lab, one phoneme was heard as two phones.
phone contrasted with phoneme
Mira marked the first phone in 'pin' as having extra air.
The classroom chart grouped similar phones by where the tongue touched.
- speech phone
- different phones
- phone in brackets
- phone and phoneme
- speech sound
the clearest plain-English paraphrase
- sound unit
broader and less technical
- segment
a technical term that often refers to one speech sound in sequence
Grammar Patterns
each phone
different phones
phone in square brackets
Usage Note
Mainly used in phonetics. Distinguish from phoneme, which is the abstract sound category in a language system.
Common Mistakes
be on the phone
idiomTo be using a telephone to talk to someone.
Maya was on the phone with her boss for twenty minutes.
Is your brother on the phone right now?
phone — verb
1. to call someone and speak to them by phone.
to call someone and speak to them by phone.
I'll phone my mother after the train reaches Taichung.
phone + person
The dentist phoned Alan before the morning appointment.
Please phone Mr. Huang's shop if your printer stops working.
phone + place
Rita phoned from the airport when her suitcase disappeared.
phone from somewhere
- phone home
- phone the office
- phone somebody back
- phone from the airport
Grammar Patterns
phone somebody
phone from somewhere
phone about something
Usage Note
Often takes the person or place directly as its object. In many everyday contexts, it is interchangeable with call, though phone is slightly more specific about the method.
Common Mistakes
phone — suffix
1. added to words for a person or group that uses a named language.
added to words for a person or group that uses a named language.
The article compared Francophone writers from Montreal and Dakar.
-phone for speakers of a language
At school, the new club welcomed both Anglophone and Spanish-speaking students.
The school survey counted Lusophone families on the north side of town.
Our teacher explained that Sinophone can name Chinese-speaking communities.
Sinophone naming a language community
- Francophone writer
- Anglophone student
- Sinophone community
- Lusophone family
- language-speaking
a plainer descriptive phrase
- language user
broader and less tied to established learned labels
- speech community label
an explanatory phrase rather than a direct substitute
Grammar Patterns
[language root] + -phone
Anglophone / Francophone / Sinophone
Usage Note
Usually appears in academic, cultural, or social description. Distinguish from noun combining form/4, which explains the same element as a meaning part inside word analysis.
Common Mistakes
2. added to some words whose whole form names a musical instrument.
added to some words whose whole form names a musical instrument.
At band practice, Nia carried her saxophone in a black case.
-phone in an instrument name
The child struck the xylophone and counted each bright note.
The orchestra tuned a vibraphone before the doors opened.
In music class, Ms. Gao grouped saxophone and xylophone as -phone instruments.
grouping words ending in -phone
- saxophone
- xylophone
- vibraphone
- -phone words
- instrument ending
a plain explanation of its role
- music-word suffix
broader and less precise
Grammar Patterns
[root] + -phone
saxophone / xylophone / vibraphone
Usage Note
Most often discussed in word study, because modern English does not freely add this ending to new instrument names. Distinguish from noun combining form/2, which describes the meaning part inside such compounds.
phone — noun combining form
1. in compound words, a device that sends sound, carries it, or lets people hear it
in compound words, a device that sends sound, carries it, or lets people hear it.
On the classroom poster, microphone ends with -phone because it carries sound.
-phone meaning a sound device
In Mei's workbook, page 42 grouped headphone, earphone, and telephone together.
On the whiteboard, Mr. Ho wrote sound device under -phone in headphone.
The museum poster showed megaphone as another word built with -phone.
word built with -phone
- microphone
- headphone
- megaphone
- word ending in -phone
- sound-device element
an explanatory phrase for word study
- audio-device form
similar in meaning, but more technical in tone
- sound-carrying form
emphasizes transmission rather than the object itself
Grammar Patterns
[root] + -phone
microphone / headphone / megaphone
Usage Note
This sense explains the element inside compounds, not a free noun you can use by itself. Distinguish from noun/1, which is the everyday standalone word for a telephone.
Common Mistakes
2. in compound words, something whose full word names an instrument for making musi
in compound words, something whose full word names an instrument for making music.
In class, the ending -phone in xylophone helps form the instrument's name.
-phone in an instrument compound
Marcy circled vibraphone and saxophone in the list of -phone instruments.
Our teacher said metallophone is another instrument word with this form.
The museum card placed lithophone beside xylophone as another example.
another example with -phone
- xylophone
- vibraphone
- metallophone
- -phone instruments
- instrument element
a short explanation of its role in word formation
- music-name form
less exact, but still points to naming function
Grammar Patterns
[root] + -phone
xylophone / vibraphone / metallophone
Usage Note
Very close to suffix/2 in meaning. Here the focus is the inner word part in compounds, while suffix/2 treats -phone as the ending used to form such names.
3. in technical compounds, a speech sound or sound segment.
in technical compounds, a speech sound or sound segment.
On the lecture slide, allophone was split to show -phone for one speech sound.
-phone meaning a speech sound
The teacher broke allophone into allo- and -phone during class.
On the handout, triphone labeled three linked speech sounds in sequence.
In the speech lab manual, diphone named two sounds spoken as one pair.
diphone for two spoken sounds
- allophone
- diphone
- triphone
- speech-sound term
- sound segment
a close technical paraphrase
- speech-sound element
an explanatory phrase for morphology or phonetics classes
Grammar Patterns
[prefix] + -phone
allophone / diphone / triphone
Usage Note
Seen mainly when technical terms are explained piece by piece. Distinguish from noun/5, which is the standalone technical noun phone.
4. in compounds, a person or community that uses the language named before it.
in compounds, a person or community that uses the language named before it.
On the quiz card, Anglophone showed -phone for an English-speaking group.
-phone meaning speaker of a language
Our teacher parsed Francophone into a language name plus -phone.
In the museum essay, Sinophone labeled Chinese-speaking communities in Vancouver and Singapore.
On the map, Lusophone marked places where Portuguese is widely spoken.
Lusophone used for Portuguese-speaking places
- Anglophone
- Francophone
- Sinophone
- Lusophone
- speaker of
the plainest explanation in normal English
- language community member
broader, especially when the word refers to a group rather than one person
Grammar Patterns
[language root] + -phone
Anglophone / Francophone / Sinophone
Usage Note
Most useful when breaking down words such as Anglophone or Francophone. Distinguish from suffix/1, which presents the same ending as a suffix category rather than a meaning element.
phone — adjective combining form
1. in compounds, linked to people, places, or culture that use a named language.
in compounds, linked to people, places, or culture that use a named language.
The 2024 education report studied Francophone schools outside Quebec.
Francophone + plural noun
A small Anglophone neighborhood grew around the port.
The museum opened a Sinophone film series for spring.
Our guide described the city as a Lusophone cultural center.
Lusophone modifying a cultural noun
- Francophone school
- Anglophone neighborhood
- Sinophone film series
- Lusophone cultural center
- language-based
a plainer descriptive phrase
- language-community
an explanatory label rather than a natural free adjective
Grammar Patterns
Francophone school
Anglophone neighborhood
Sinophone media
Usage Note
This sense modifies nouns such as school, media, area, or community. Distinguish from noun combining form/4, which names the people or group themselves.
Word family
- telephonenounA1
- telephoneverbA1
- telephonicadjectiveC2
- phoneticadjectiveC1
- phoneticsnounC1
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
For noun/1, phone is the normal everyday word for the device in most situations. Telephone is the fuller form and can sound more formal, official, or a little old-fashioned. Mobile and cell phone are narrower because they mean a portable device, not a fixed home or office line. Mobile is especially common in British English, while cell phone is especially common in American English. Landline refers to the non-mobile type connected to a building. Handset often points to the physical receiver part, or to the unit you hold in your hand. So you might say, 'My phone is in my bag,' 'Please enter your cell phone number,' or 'The cottage still has a landline.'
Common collocations
Nouns
- phone call
- phone line
- phone number
- phone service
Phrases
- answer the phone
- pick up the phone
- be on your phone
Prepositions
- by phone
- on the phone
- over the phone
Etymology
Phone began as a shortened form of telephone in the nineteenth century. Telephone was built in modern scientific vocabulary from Greek tele, meaning far, and phone, meaning voice or sound. English later adopted the shorter form for everyday use, then extended it to the verb phone. The same Greek element still appears in compounds such as microphone, saxophone, and Anglophone.