call box

American  

noun

1. an outdoor telephone or signal box for calling the police or fire department.

2. British. a public telephone booth.

3. a post-office box for mail that can be picked up only by a renter in person.

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call box British  

noun

1. Also called: telephone box.   telephone kiosk.  a soundproof enclosure for a public telephone

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Etymology

Origin of call box

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

The car went off the west roadway edge, hit a call box and continued south through vegetation before going over a cliff, officials said.

From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026

BT was consulting with Aberdeenshire Council on the future of the call box, as well as those located in Crovie and Portsoy.

From BBC • Sep. 10, 2021

I was a fan of Duchamp but wasn’t familiar with that particular piece, so I remember standing in a call box while Richard described it to me over the phone.

From The Guardian • Dec. 7, 2018

I pass them when I drive to work, and when I was at the AU gallery, I was delighted to see that one of his paintings had a call box.

From Washington Post • Aug. 1, 2017

The rooms are yellow and bare of anything except a single blue bunk, a steel sink and toilet, and a call box by the door.

From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater