mobile phone

American

noun

any wireless telephone that operates over a relatively large area, as a cell phone or PCS phone.

mobile phone British

noun

a portable telephone that works by means of a cellular radio system

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of mobile phone

First recorded in 1945–50

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.

See Examples For:

mobile phone

But it admitted its audit suffered from limitations, such as the executive in charge of planning the campaign refusing to surrender their mobile phone.

From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026

Pradeep refused to own even a mobile phone.

From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026

The other postponed buying a mobile phone until he became a doctor.

From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2026

FBI agents executed a search warrant on Walter’s mobile phone at Midway International Airport in Chicago on Sept. 18, people familiar with the matter said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026

Dad took his mobile phone in case of news.

From "The London Eye Mystery" by Siobhan Dowd

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023