calling card
Americannoun
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Also called card, visiting card. a small card with the name and often the address of a person or of a couple, for presenting when making a business or social call, for enclosing in gifts, etc.
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Informal. any mark, sign, trace, characteristic, or the like by which someone or something can be recognized.
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Also called phone card. a prepaid card or charge card that can be used to make a telephone call at home or away from home.
noun
Etymology
Origin of calling card
An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The findings suggest that BFAs could function as a durable chemical "calling card" that helps preserve information about individual identity.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
Tapping loans from his insurers had been a calling card of the 66-year-old billionaire’s conglomerate for years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
But Finch, 59, anchored a band whose calling card was thrilling, glorious bluntness.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Or is the Scotland faithful's new calling card here to stay?
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
She hastily slid her calling card behind the trash can, adjusting it so it could be seen by someone looking for it but not spotted as trash.
From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
