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• phone
  phone

  noun

  telephone.
• -phone
  -phone

  a combining form meaning “speech sound” (homophone ), “an instrument of sound transmission or reproduction” (telephone ), “a musical instrument” (saxophone; xylophone ).

phone

¹ American  

[fohn] / foʊn /

noun

1. telephone.

2. a portable electronic telephone device, as a cell phone, mobile phone, or smartphone.

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verb (used with object)

• phones,
  present (3rd person singular)
• phoned,
  past participle,  past
• phoning
  present participle

1. to speak to or summon (a person) by telephone.

2. to send (a message) by telephone.

verb (used without object)

• phones,
  present (3rd person singular)
• phoned,
  past participle,  past
• phoning
  present participle

1. to send a message by telephone.

phone ² American  

[fohn] / foʊn /

noun

Phonetics.

1. a speech sound.

   There are three phonetically different “t” phones in an utterance of “titillate,” and two in an utterance of “tattletale.”

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-phone ³ American  

1. a combining form meaning “speech sound” (homophone ), “an instrument of sound transmission or reproduction” (telephone ), “a musical instrument” (saxophone; xylophone ).

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-phone ¹ British  

combining form

1. (forming nouns) indicating voice, sound, or a device giving off sound

   microphone

   telephone

2. (forming nouns and adjectives) (a person) speaking a particular language

   Francophone

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phone ² British  

/ fəʊn /

noun

1. short for telephone

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phone ³ British  

/ fəʊn /

noun

1. phonetics a single uncomplicated speech sound

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• phonal
  adjective
• -phonic
  combining form

Inflected Forms

Participles

• phoning
  present
• phoned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• phone
  simple
• phones
  simple
• have phoned
  perfect
• has phoned
  perfect
• am phoning
  progressive
• are phoning
  progressive
• is phoning
  progressive
• have been phoning
  perfect progressive
• has been phoning
  perfect progressive

Past

• phoned
  simple
• had phoned
  perfect
• was phoning
  progressive
• were phoning
  progressive
• had been phoning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will phone
  simple
• will have phoned
  perfect
• will be phoning
  progressive
• will have been phoning
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of phone¹

First recorded in 1880–85; by shortening

Origin of phone²

First recorded in 1865–70, phone is from the Greek word phōnḗ voice

Origin of -phone³

see origin at phone ²

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

phone -phone phones phoned phoning

What may change is whether people watch it on their phone or their TV or, you know, through AI glasses, but the visual component is still stronger for everyone than anything else.

From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2026

She also shared her phone passcode with Samira.

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

Kay contends that the phone could have been tampered with because it continued to receive messages for more than two weeks after Skaggs’ death.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

In the hour following her first WTA title win, Britain's Harriet Dart had little time to respond to the stream of congratulatory messages flashing up on her phone.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

Meanwhile, my phone is still out of commission, and I take a moment to reconfirm the fact that that means the airline app is useless, too.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

How many non-computer or -phone devices can, in a pinch, be used for tweeting?

From Slate ● Aug. 15, 2019

KYIV—At 10:47 p.m. on Sunday, mobile phones in Ukraine’s capital city buzzed with unusual warnings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

A series of all clear messages were then delivered to users' phones, which were connected to each of the previous alerts, individually declaring each threat clear.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

But if those people are constantly on their phones, it’s not completely their fault.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 1, 2026

Had phones been allowed, she added, this very moment “would have been a TikTok video with someone who doesn’t like my face commenting on it.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

The police station is full of people moving around, talking, phones ringing, doors opening and closing.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

"They phoned the airbase police, who didn't answer the phone. It just rang out so she dialled 999," he told the BBC.

From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026

As I was leaving my apartment that morning, my father phoned me.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Wolff immediately phoned Marco Antonelli, to tell him the "very big news".

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026

Salonen was on the jury of the Gustav Mahler Conducting Competition that Dudamel won and phoned Borda from Bamberg, famously describing the boyish Dudamel as “a conducting animal.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

To confirm the story, some phoned their local newspapers, radio stations, or the police.

From "Spooked!" by Gail Jarrow

"As soon as a flat comes onto the market, 50 people are phoning," she told AFP at the couple's new flat in suburban Madrid, where boxes lay unpacked.

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

Over the next two years they became firm friends, texting and phoning each other when they were not at work.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

"It seems that constantly we're phoning the police or writing up incident reports," she said.

From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026

People forget what shopping looked like before Amazon: flipping through glossy catalogs, mailing or phoning in orders and waiting weeks for delivery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026

She’ll be phoning Mr. Frost's house over and over to find out when I’m going to get back.

From "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman

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Related Words

• call up
• contact
• dial

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